Children of the Past
by Zero Unit RGB
Summary: Five children from all over the world were strangers to each other until they were suddenly summoned to the Digital World. They were chosen to save it from the forces of darkness and they find that a little friendship goes a long way. But will they be able to save the world and return home? Only one way to find out! Do not have to read Children of the Present to read this. REVIEW!
1. Prologue: The Journey Starts

**This is the second story to my Children of Time series which is supposed to run at the same time as Children of the Present. If you have not read it yet, then I suggest you should, at least up until Chapter 14 because that's when the very first Digidestined are revealed. I hope you all enjoy and yeah, don't forget to leave a review!**

-X-

**August 1: Mumbai, India – 11:59 AM**

Rai never found herself bored in her town; she always found somethingto do even if she didn't have anyone to do it with.It's not like she was antisocial or anything, her parents just had a lot of expectations for her even at the young age of nine. Rai just knew she had to meet them. Besides, it wasn't like she didn't have any friends, just not any in her town, or her age.

Rai sighed as she opened up her computer and turned to an old messaging conversation where she could escape the stress of her daily life. "That's odd" she muttered to herself. "He's not here right now?"

She looked to the clock and quickly did the math in her head. "It's only around 3:29 in Japan right now, so he should at least be awake."

Rai turned back to her old conversation and started scrolling through it to see what they were last talking about to refresh her memory. It's not like they could do anything other than communicate with others with the computer yet anyway.

Don't you ever think that you were meant for something more than just life on Earth?

No. Frankly, I'm not quite sure what even means.

It's silly but I was just wondering because lately, I've been feeling like I was destined for something huge.

Maybe you're been watching too many superhero movies.

Yeah, just forget about it. Ah, it's almost time for me to go to bed. We'll talk some more some other time.

Okay, how about next Saturday?

Sounds good. I'll be on again when it's noon at your place.

Rai looked back to the clock and watched as the minute hand ticked and hit the 12. She then turned back to the screen and tilted her head curiously. "What in the world did he mean by all that anyway?" she wondered aloud.

Suddenly, as if to answer her question, her screen turned black and then turned back on with an extremely bright white flash. She sat up in surprise, her seat falling to the floor with a loud clatter but before she could even say anything, a strange light came out from the computer and into her hands.

"What in the world?" she gasped.

She stared at the strange device that her computer had given her. It was yellow, rectangular, and had just a few buttons on it. It reminded her of a cell phone with the small square screen on it but there were only three buttons. Without even thinking, she decided to press the center button and the device turned on.

A voice came out from the device but she didn't drop it out of fright or anything. "Rai Tabassam, are you prepared to face your destiny?"

"What?" was all she could get out. She was reminded of the conversation she had with her pen pal from Japan and wondered if he had gotten this strange device as well. "I'm sorry but I'm not quite sure if I understand."

"The Digital World needs you."

"The Digital…World?"

Suddenly, a new voice came from the device; it wasn't like the computerized woman anymore. It sounded more like a pleading young man with a cracking voice. He sounded so desperate and pathetic from the way he was begging. "Please Rai, we need you!"

Rai just couldn't turn down a cry for help, even if it was from a stranger. "Then I will! Just tell me what I have to do."

"Point the D-Sync to the computer screen and I will tell you everything in person."

Rai assumed that the 'D-Sync' referred to the strange device to she complied and suddenly, she was sucked into the computer. She was expecting all kinds of crazy things, someone to pop out of the screen, an image of whoever she talking to will show up, anything except for being drawn into her own computer like that.

A strange and unforgettable journey was about to begin for her.

**August 1, 1973: New York, USA – 2:23 AM**

There was no way Babel was going to be able to sleep with what had happened earlier today. He got punished for something that wasn't even his fault, but he covered for his 'friends' anyway. He supposed that he should've been used to it by now but he was just getting tired of it.

Babel huffed in frustration when he finally decided to get out of bed and change into his morning clothes. He changed into a blue sweatshirt, brown cargo pants, and a baseball cap and then got out of the house without waking his parents.

It might seem strange for an eleven year-old boy to think this, but he felt that jogging always cleared his mind. In hindsight, it was probably not the best idea to do it in the middle of the night in New York of all places though, but Babel didn't care at that moment.

"This is probably the dumbest thing I've ever done" he muttered as he started his night jog.

Babel had already run past four city blocks before getting the ominous feeling that he wasn't alone. That was probably not the best feeling to have when you're alone and out in the streets in the middle of the night. He then remembered hearing on a news station earlier that day on the radio that there was a murderer on the loose in downtown, New York, somewhere in his neighborhood.

His jog steadily became a run and soon he was sprinting when he heard the footsteps behind him get faster. "Okay, this has become more than just another one of my 'dumb idea'. This is the epitome of stupidity for me."

It was only a few seconds later when he noticed the footsteps behind him had stopped. Babel stopped to a screech as he tried to catch his breath. He looked behind him and couldn't see anyone behind him so he figured he was safe. He turned back around and fell to his butt in fright when he saw a figure wearing a white cloak standing in front of me.

"P-Please don't kill me!" Babel pleaded. "I'm just an eleven year-old boy!"

"What?! Why would I kill you? That explains why you were running at least."

Babel's shaking stilled just a little bit as he took a closer look at the person. He now saw that the figure had a barely physical form, it was wavering and static-like, kind of like the television with bad satellite connection.

"Who are you?" asked Babel, when he finally had the courage to speak.

The cloaked figured pulled out a strange gray device and gave it to him. "I am a messenger from the Digital World, here to give you this D-Sync and tell you that you are needed to save us. Without you, our world will be doomed."

Babel was now more confused than before but he took the device anyway. "I'm not quite sure I understand what's going on. I mean, why me? Like I said, I'm only eleven. What can I do?"

"You may be a child but you are destined to do great things."

"You sound like my mother" Babel muttered. "And I know I won't. I may be a kid but I'm not naïve. There's a reason why I'm top of my class and that's because I see the reality of this crazy, messed up world we live in."

"I never said that your destiny was in this world though" the cloaked figure chuckled. "There is a world where the laws of this reality don't exist. Why don't you press the center button on your D-Sync and you'll get what I mean."

Babel glanced down at the device before looking back up to ask what the person meant but he was gone. "What the…? How did he even do that?"

He looked back at the D-Sync and his first instinct told him to just toss it away and forget about it but his curiosity got the better of him. He pressed the center button and a computerized, female voice came out from it after the screen flashed on.

"Babel Jones, are you prepared to face your destiny?"

Babel wasn't quite sure what to say so on impulse; he decided to just go along with it, thinking it was just some sort of childish prank. "Um…Yeah. Who is this?"

The voice didn't reply, instead, someone new answered him. The voice was high pitched, male, and slightly nasally and he chuckled in amusement, as if Babel should know who he was. "I'm your partner silly!"

"My partner?"

"Why don't you come to the Digital World and meet me for yourself?"

"That would be nice I suppose but how do I get there?" Babel asked. It was just another thing to add to his bad idea list. "I mean, I don't really have a passport or anything."

"Don't worry; your D-Sync will take you there."

"Wait what?"

There was no reply, not that he had the time to get one in the first place when he suddenly became a small ball of gray light. As the light, he was shot right back to his home, through the window to his room and into his computer.

**August 1, 1973: Moscow, Soviet Union – 10:28 AM**

Daisy hated the sweltering heat of Moscow in the summer but she was at least grateful that it was only 23 degrees Celsius which isn't as warm as other places in the world. She was sitting on a park bench all alone while watching other kids her age play with their friends.

She knew that her parents were worried about their ten year-old not having any friends since it wasn't exactly normal for someone her age to be by her lonesome. But it's not like Daisy could control how people saw her or the laws of society that had made them see her the way they do.

"They're all idiots anyway" she muttered to herself.

The main reason why she didn't have anyone to hang out with was because her appearance made people view her differently. She hated to wear feminine clothing and despised having long hair because it got in the way all the time. Daisy always wore t-shirts and shorts during the summer, add that with her short hair and aggressive attitude, you get Daisy, the unintentional male impersonator.

It was because of people mistaking her identity and then her reacting venomously that throws people off. But what made it worse for her are the bullies that act like she is a boy. They'd treat her differently, they'd tease her, and she couldn't even use a public bathroom without them saying something nasty about her.

One day, she attacked a boy for teasing her and then his big brother actually hit her. It wasn't just him either, there were many but she didn't bother to count. Just know that she went back home with a black eye and writing on her forehead that labeled her as 'UGLY'.

Daisy unconsciously rubbed her forehead. "It still feels like it's there…"

There was one person around her age who understood her even though they never actually met face to face in real life. Although the last time they had spoken with each other, they had a rather strange conversation and Daisy just couldn't make heads or tails out of it.

"What did he mean by destiny?" she wondered aloud.

There was a sound in the distance that distracted her but it was complete unfamiliar to her. She's heard of people describing this sound before and the one thing she could guess it to be was a train.

"A train?" she muttered.

Daisy looked off to her right, where she believed she could hear the sound and suddenly, out of nowhere, a train came charging in and stopped right in front of her. The doors opened as if expecting her to step in.

A German accented voice came from the train. "All aboard!"

Daisy blinked and looked around. The first thing she noticed was that no one around her seemed to noticed the strange train and the second thing she noticed was that no one nearby said that.

"Hello? Is there a conductor on this train?"

"Hey, that's rude!" said the train indignantly. Daisy jumped back, she knew for sure that the vehicle had spoken but that was impossible. "I'm no ordinary train, I'm a Trailmon! I'm an Angler Trailmon more specifically and I am here to take one Margaritka Kaipova to the Digital World."

"Whoa, you're not taking me anywhere" Daisy snapped. "My parents always told me to keep away from strangers and I'm pretty sure that applies to trains as well."

"Ahem!"

"Okay, Trailmons."

"Ugh, just step inside."

Daisy hesitated but then she peeked into the Trailmon car and noticed a pink device sitting in one of the seats. It seemed to be waiting for her or something. By some mysterious force, she walked in and picked up the device.

"Angler, what is this?" Daisy asked. 'I'm definitely going crazy. Or maybe my boredom has led to me creating this fantasy train.'

"That is your D-Sync" Trailmon replied as the doors shut. Daisy's head snapped to the door in panic, ready to shout at Trailmon to let her out but she didn't get the chance to when she heard the engine start. "Hang on to something. This is going to be a rough ride."

Trailmon sped off and it seemed to create a portal in front of it which it entered and soon enough, Daisy found herself riding on train tracks suspended in midair. She looked down below and she could see a forest beneath her.

"I know I've never ridden on a train before but I don't think they're supposed to take you to places like this!" she yelled. She didn't even realize when her thumb accidentally pressed the center button of her D-Sync and it turned on until a female, cheery voice popped out from it.

"Hey Margaritka! It's great to finally meet you!"

"Huh?" Daisy stared at the device. "Wait, how do you know my name?"

"I'm your partner silly. But can I call you something else? Margaritka is kind of hard to pronounce."

"Um…" Daisy wasn't quite sure what to say. "Well, I guess you can call me whatever you like."

"Then how about 'Daisy'? That's what Margaritka translates into in English, right?"

"Yeah…" Daisy nodded. "I guess Daisy sounds nice."

**August 1, 1973: Hong Kong, China – 2:29 PM**

Janyu sniffed as he wiped away the last of his tears. He sat at his desk with his computer in front of him while trying to fix his glasses with some tape. They had been snapped right in half by a couple of bullies.

They always picked on him because he was one of the weakest in their tai-chi class. Usually, he was able to avoid getting beat up by simply avoiding them, but other times, he hid behind his best friend, Cho Lin Zhang, the best student in the class. Janyu has seen him fight three other kids in their class blindfolded and still win.

But Cho was away in Japan at the moment for vacation so he had no one to protect him. Janyu supposed it was for the best, he had to learn to take care of himself for once in his life rather than depending on others to solve his problems.

So he chose not to run away but he regretted that decision now. He didn't understand what he did to deserve this. Maybe it was just because he had been hiding and running away from the tough situations in life. Either way, he just wished he was more capable than he was now.

He put the glasses on his face once he got the tape on just right. "Oh…" he whimpered. "Why do I have to be so weak and pathetic?"

Janyu needed to relax himself so he went out to his dad's large farm outside the house. It contained everything from rice paddies to all kinds of various fruits, it was very calming to just sit there and let your thoughts take over.

"At least I'm not afraid of bees like some of those bullies" Janyu chuckled when a bee landed next to him. Janyu let the insect crawl onto his hand and he stared at it as its wings fluttered but never took off. "I don't know why people would avoid such incredible creatures."

The bee flew away soon enough and Janyu decided that it was time to take care of some of the crops while his father was at the market in the city. He took the hose and filled some buckets with water. He carried them out and started watering the plants. He covered about half of them when a strange beeping sound drew him back to the house.

"What is that?" he asked no one in particular. One of the bees from outside followed him inside and landed on his shoulder as he walked over to his computer. "I hope none of those bullies hijacked into my account and sent me some nasty messages like last time. Maybe it's just him."

Janyu was just about to turn on his computer when something caught his eye in the corner of the room. Something was glowing and it seemed to be hiding in his bookshelf.

"Hm? Hello? What are you doing over there?" Janyu asked as he approached it.

The unknown creature made some indecipherable noises before sticking its head out so that Janyu could see it more clearly. It was unlike any animal Janyu had ever seen in his life but somehow, he felt like he could understand it.

"What's your name?"

He was answered by a series of curious sounds.

"You don't have one? Well what do I call you?"

Another reply without the use of actual words.

"A Digi-Gnome, huh. What are you doing here?"

The creature finally got out from the bookshelf and floated over to Janyu, causing the bee to fly away and out from the window. The Digi-Gnome simply dropped a green device into his hands and then started flying around Janyu's head.

Janyu nodded in response to whatever the odd creature said and pressed the center button of the device. The screen flashed once and then a human, female, computerized voice came out from it.

"Do you wish to get stronger, Janyu Wong?"

Janyu blinked, he was unsure of what to say since he was never good with dealing with strangers. "Well, yes, I do but…I don't think it'll ever be possible."

"It is very possible Janyu, you just need to believe in yourself."

Suddenly, a new voice came from the device, it sounded rather childish but at the same time, had this tone of maturity to it as well. "It also helps if other people believe in you too" the voice said. "And I do Janyu! I'll be there with you ever step of the way while you face your destiny in the Digital World!"

"My destiny?" Janyu muttered.

"Janyu, we need your help so can you please come meet me?"

Janyu didn't know how to say no. "I guess but what do I have to do?"

"Just point your D-Sync to your computer screen."

Janyu blinked and then did as he was told. "Like this?" There was no reply from the device but there was one form his computer as his room was filled with a bright white light. In one second, the bee from outside saw his human friend standing in his room with a flying digital creature and the next, they were both gone.

The bee seemed to shrug as it buzzed back out into the crops.

**August 1, 1973: London, England – 7:29 AM**

Robert tossed the soccer ball upwards from where he was lying on his bed and he kept this constant motion for the next few minutes. He then groaned and dragged his back down the bed, taking his sheets with him as he lay on the floor.

"I am so bored" he groaned. It had only been ten minutes since he had woken up and he was already bored with his day. Breakfast wouldn't even be ready for another forty minutes.

He and his family had just moved to London, England from America a week ago and he had no one to hang out with being the new kid in the neighborhood and all. They could've moved to Tokyo, he would've at least known somebody there at least. Although his parents would've never allowed him to meet with a stranger without adult supervision but at least he would know someone!

He had wanted to make friend the day before and it's not like he was shy, far from it. According to all of his friends back in his old home and even himself, he was vulgar, blunt, and probably the most outgoing ten year-old in the world.

When he had gone out to try and make new friends, he suggested playing soccer with some of the kids. When he had asked them, they had looked at him as if he was speaking a completely different language but then one of them said that Robert had meant 'football'. The kid then apologized for his friends not knowing the American term so Robert apologized as well for confusing them momentarily.

They didn't really want to play and so they basically left Robert alone with the other kid who he found out was named Nigel.

Nigel apologized again for his friends' behavior before chasing after them. Robert knew that Nigel was nice but it didn't matter, to him, all he saw was a British brat.

"They probably all think they're superior to me" Robert muttered spitefully.

He angrily threw his soccer ball as hard as he could at the wall which ended up making it bounce all around the room until it hit his computer. The ball somehow turned on the machine and then made a stop at his bed.

"Oh yeah, maybe he's on right now!" Robert grinned as he quickly sat at his chair. He glanced at the clock and took a moment to think about it. "It should only be somewhere in between three and four in the afternoon so he should be on right now. Or at least be awake."

He sighed in disappointment when it turned out that his friend was not even on at the moment. "Back to being bored!" he groaned.

Robert grabbed his soccer goggles and placed them around his neck. He was about to go downstairs to meet his parents a little ahead of time but stopped when he remembered that he hadn't turned his computer off just yet.

He walked back to his computer to find a strange message on it. It took a moment for him to realize that he was staring at a message.

Robert McCoy, are you ready to face your destiny?

"Huh? My destiny?" Robert read. He looked it over and over again before clicking the 'OK' button. It was better than being bored at least.

The message changed and it showed an image of an egg that seemed to be pulsing, beating like a heart would. Underneath it, it stated: You are about to start an unbelievable journey into the Digital World? Are you prepared for this? Then click the Digi-Egg if you are.

Robert did as the message stated and suddenly, there was a bright flash of light and lying in front of him was a red device of some sort. He slowly picked it up and turned it over in his hands to try and figure out what exactly it was.

"Okay, I'm dreaming, I'm not even awake yet. I mean, I did eat a lot of pizza last night" Robert tried to rationalize. He looked back to the screen and saw a new message there.

Press the center button of your D-Sync.

"A D-Sync huh" he muttered. "I guess that's what this thing is called." He flipped the device over in his hands again before staring at the front of it. "I guess since it's a dream, it can't hurt to try" he shrugged as he pressed the button.

The screen flashed and a masculine voice came out of, it didn't sound like a kid but it didn't exactly sound like an adult either. "Hey Rob, it's nice to finally meet you!" the voice chimed. "I've been waiting for you for a long time now."

"Define long."

"I think like two or three decades!"

Robert knew that he was no math prodigy but he at least knew how long a decade is. "That's impossible, I wasn't even born then so how could you be waiting for me for that long if I didn't even exist."

Robert could almost imagine the owner of the voice shrugging. "I don't know. Time difference."

"Yeah, I don't think that's how it works."

"Well, putting that aside. Are you ready for the adventure of your life?"

Robert didn't answer right away. Instead, he took a few seconds to think about it as he looked around his room. It's not like his parents cared anyway if he was gone for a long time, it was their decision to move to London and they didn't even give him a week's notice. They basically got up and left one morning and that was that. Besides, this was all a dream anyway. But if it wasn't, then this is going to be one heck of a journey.

"Okay, let's do it" Robert smiled. "By the way, what do I do exactly?"

"Just point the D-Sync at your computer."

Robert slowly turned to face his computer screen which no longer had any more messages popping up on it. There just a blank white screen and he had no idea what was going to happen but there was only one way to find out. "Well…Here goes nothing!"

**August 1: Sky Tracks – 3:32 PM (Japan Time)**

Daisy watched the clouds roll by, waiting for something exciting to happen already. Sometimes, you need to be careful for what you wish for or you might just get. The top of the Trailmon car opened up and suddenly, four screaming kids came falling from the sky and onto the floor in front of her.

"What the heck do you guys think you're doing?!" Daisy shouted once her initial fright vanished.

"Dude, calm down" Robert groaned, not noticing the vein that popped on her forehead. "It's not like we chose to drop from the sky just now."

"Yeah, man" Babel muttered, bringing another vein to appear on Daisy's forehead. "Geez, you have a lot of energy for someone awake in the middle of the night."

Daisy didn't even hear the last part of Babel's statement; she just hit both of the guys atop the head with her full strength. "I'm a girl you dimwits and don't make me have to prove it to you!" she shouted at them while they rubbed the bumps forming o their heads.

"Wait" Rai said as she helped Janyu up. "Did you just say middle of the night? You do realize that it's noon right? It's technically the middle of the day."

"You're both wrong" Robert muttered. "It's early in the morning, somewhere like 7:30, at least when I last check my clock anyway."

Janyu walked over to the window where Daisy was staring out of earlier and try to estimate the time of day from the position of the sun. "Well, if you ask me, I can tell you that it's past noon but it's too bright to be night" he stated. He then looked down and started trembling uncontrollably. "And now I realize we're still high in the air and that I'm freakishly afraid of heights!"

He jumped away from the window and accidentally bumped into Daisy who basically picked him up and tossed him into Babel's arms, making both boys fall back onto the floor. "Look, I don't know what you brats are doing here or why you're here but just to let you all know, I hate dealing with strangers" Daisy scoffed.

"Brats?" Robert repeated. "You can't be more than a year older than us!"

"I'm ten."

"So am I!"

Once Babel got back up with Janyu as well, he joined in their conversation about age. "Well, I'm older than both of you! I'm eleven so you guys have to follow me!"

"Yeah, right!" Robert and Daisy both stated.

"You two aren't so different at least" Rai giggled. She then looked over to Janyu who hadn't said anything at all and was simply trying very hard not to cry. That was when she realized something rather off. "What language are you guys speaking right now?"

"English."

"Russian.

"English."

"Mandarin."

"That's what I thought" Rai said. "You guys all sounded like you're speaking Marathi to me but I doubted you were all from Mumbai like I am." She then took her chance to look out the window and examine their surroundings. "But I wonder where in the world we are and how we're all capable of understanding each other."

"It is definitely strange when you think about it" Babel agreed. His eyes wandered over to Robert's belt and he saw the red D-Sync attached to it so he unconsciously reached for his in his pocket. "So you got one of those D-Syncs too huh?"

The five of them all ended up taking out their D-Syncs and showing them to each other.

"Ugh, I hate the color pink though" Daisy groaned.

"What are we even supposed to do with these anyway?" Robert asked.

"What are you even doing with those goggles?" Babel inquired. "Did the guy who gave you your D-Sync tell you that you were going for a swim or something?"

"Hey! For your information, this is part of my outfit!" Robert retorted. "And what guy? My computer gave this to me."

Rai sighed in exasperation. She was the youngest one there and yet, she showed more signs of maturity than the rest of them. This group was completely dysfunctional; how were they supposed to save this world? Well, depending whether or not these kids were for the same reasons she was, which reminded her. "Hey, I just realized. None of us even know each others' names. Why don't we start by introducing ourselves rather than get into another pointless argument. I'll start, I'm Rai Tabassam of Mumbai, India."

"I'm Robert McCoy" Robert said next. "I'm from…Well I was born and raised in Malibu, California of the US but then I moved to London in England."

"I'm Babel Jones of New York back in America."

"Well, I'm Margaritka Kaipova of Moscow but you guys can call me Daisy."

"…I'm Janyu Wong from Hong Kong, China."

Right after Janyu had finished speaking, the door to their cart opened up and what appeared to be a huge candle hopped in. Upon closer inspection, all of them could now see that it had a face and even the fire on top had one as well.

The candle seemed to sigh in relief and opened the door to their train car fully. "Oh good, you guys finally stopped fighting with each other."

Rai recognized the voice. "You sound like that guy from my D-Sync."

As soon as she said that, two other strange creatures appeared at the doorway alongside the talking candlestick. One was much smaller and it appeared to be amphibious, with its only way of transporting itself would be crawling. The other looked like a little puppy with a golden collar around her neck. The three of them ran into the cart and approached the human children.

"I'm Candlemon!" the candle said, greeting Rai personally. "For the duration of your stay in the Digital World and for however long you are willing to be friends me, I will be your Digimon partner. It is an honor to meet you!"

The amphibian hopped into Babel's arms in joy and excitement at meeting his partner. "I'm Betamon! I'm going to be your partner Babel! I mean, if you're okay with it."

The last one came over to Daisy calmly and rather sophisticatedly. "And I'm Salamon. It's really nice to finally meet you in person Daisy and not just talk to you through your D-Sync. I hope you guys are hungry because we asked the other two to bring us snacks since we figured you guys wouldn't have any money on you anyways."

"The other two?" Robert repeated. He noticed that he and Janyu didn't have partners so he figured that those were the Digimon that they were referring to. He then noticed that Janyu didn't seem so frightened by the Digimon as he had been when he discovered they were so high above the ground. "Wait, Janyu, you're not freaked out by this?"

"Well, they kind of remind me of animals" Janyu replied. "And at least they're not scary looking monsters that want to eat me like in some of my nightmares." After he had said that, two other Digimon came in from the other train car carrying bags.

**Digital Analyzer: **FanBeemon is an insect Digimon and a natural carrier of the X-Antibody. They are strong and dedicated workers of their hive and they tend to be cheerful unlike most other insect Digimon. They tend to get along most with the gentle plant-type Digimon such as Palmon or Lillymon.

**Digital Analyzer: **Ryudamon is a dragon Digimon and a natural carrier of the X-Antibody. Ryudamon is known to be an "experimental" Digimon being one of the very first Digimon to have ever existed. Despite the heavy, Japanese-style armor it wears, which give him plenty of defensive ability, he is incredibly nimble. They are Digimon that do not fear others that are stronger than he is.

"Janyu! I can't believe I finally get to meet you!" FanBeemon cheered and flew towards the bespectacled boy. "I've been waiting for so long just to finally meet you and boy was it a long wait!"

"Oh…" Janyu said in surprise before smiling. "Well it's great to meet you too FanBeemon."

"Man" Babel stated when he saw the huge bee; it was the largest Digimon with them aside from Ryudamon. "I'm not really a big fan of bees, especially not if they're that big but this guys actually looks kind of cute."

"I have to agree with you there" Rai smiled.

Ryudamon walked over to Robert and stuck out his claw. "Hey there Rob, it's great to finally meet you in person. The name's Ryudamon but all of my friends call me Ryudamon."

"Good to know" Robert smiled. "So, now that we've gotten introductions out of the way, can one of you Digimon tell us what this place is and what we're doing here? Because I have to be ready for breakfast with my folks in about another half hour and I don't think they'd like it if I suddenly disappeared."

"Yeah, and my parents barely ever let me out of the house" Rai nodded. "If they found out I traveled to a completely other world without their permission then they're going to blow a gasket. And that's not something you want to see them do."

The Digimon were all silent as they glanced to each other and then back to their respective partners. They were staring at the humans as if they were the strange creatures, although in the Digimons' eyes, they probably were.

Finally, Ryudamon, who appeared to have taken the leadership role among the Digimon, spoke up. "I'm not quite sure you guys understand. Our world is in great danger and you guys are going to be staying here for quite a long time if you're going to save it."

"Wait, what?!"

-X-

**Whoa, so these guys were the very first Digidestined from the seventies? It looks like these guys are in for one huge adventure in the Digital World. Who knows what they're going to be faced with or who. But all we know is that this team is going to have to learn to work together if they want to survive. Find out what happens next on Digimon: Digital Monsters!**

**I hope you all enjoyed this first installment of Children of the Past. Just so you all know, I want this to have as much of an authentic feeling to it as I can so I'm really going to need your feedback to know how I'm doing on this one. Thank you for reading and please leave a review!**


	2. Robert's Resolution

**I appreciate the support I've received so far with this story. But I still have no idea what most of you think of it. I'd appreciate any feedback you can give me but more than anything, I hope you all enjoy this chapter. Leave a review!**

-X-

**Primary Station – 6:54 PM**

"There must be some mistake! I need to be home or else my parents are going to freak out!"

"Calm down, man."

"I told you I'm a girl Robert!"

Right after Daisy screeched that, the Trailmon came to a stop at a rather colorful station. "This is the end of the line! All passengers are to get off unless you want to go backwards. But I will not be making a stop to the Human World."

"Wait!" Babel called up to the Trailmon. "You've got to take us back! We don't belong here."

"Sorry" the Trailmon replied. He didn't sound very apologetic though. "The Digi-Core Azulongmon gave me was just a one-way ticket. You kids better get off now."

"We never signed up for any of this!" Daisy huffed.

Robert was going to wait for any of them; he stepped out of the train car and looked back at the other humans with Ryudamon by his side. "Well you guys can waste your life in there. I'm going to do something productive and try and find out why we were called here in the first place." He was followed by Rai and Candlemon who seemed to agree with him. Janyu reluctantly came afterwards with FanBeemon buzzing right behind him.

"It can't hurt to do a little exploring" Rai shrugged. "Who knows? It could be fun."

Daisy and Babel glanced at each other, not quite sure if they should just leave the Trailmon. Then again, it probably wouldn't be the smartest idea to just split up with the only other humans in a strange world. They both rushed after the others who were already quite a distance away. "Hey, wait for us!"

"I'm the one falling behind!" Betamon huffed in exhaustion from the back.

"Well hurry up then!" Salamon called after him. She didn't have any room to talk considering she was in Daisy's arm.

"Shut up! I'm trying my best here!"

About half an hour past since they started walking from the Trailmon station and they could see that the sun was setting on the horizon. Babel, being from New York and since his body was still in that time zone; he was absolutely exhausted and it showed. "Hey guys!" he yawned. "Maybe we should find a place to rest. I mean, the sun is setting and I'm really tired."

"Oh, that's right" Rai said. "You're from New York so it was the middle of the night when we ended up in this world."

The other kids stopped and stared at the pathetically drooping Babel. Since Robert already adjusted to the London time zone, he was the most awake out of the five humans. "Come on Babel, don't be a baby" Robert chuckled at the little pun. "Babel the baby, I'll keep that in mind."

"Shut up dude" Babel groaned. "I'm so tired I'm starting to see things. Like a tower made out of those little toy blocks toddlers would play with."

"Huh?"

"Babel, you're not the only one who sees it" Daisy muttered.

"That's Primary Village" FanBeemon buzzed. "It's one of the two areas where Digi-Eggs are protected and sheltered until they're hatched. All five of us Digimon were all born here though."

"Do they have beds?" Babel asked.

"Yeah" Betamon answered. "But they're all kind of small for humans. But it doesn't really matter the ground itself is really comfy."

"I'll take it!"

Babel shot off like a rocket all the way to Primary Village, surprising them all but they chased after him. By the time they had caught up, they found Babel had already fallen fast asleep on the plush ground, snoring rather loudly for a ten year-old. It was kind of ridiculous when they all really thought about it.

"We didn't even eat dinner yet" Robert muttered.

The word dinner instantly made Ryudamon perk up with an expression of hopefulness and excitement. "Are we going to be eating dinner soon?"

"I hope so" Janyu said. "Because we already ran out of snacks from the train."

Ryudamon's right ear wiggled a little as he turned in that direction. "I can hear a river nearby. Maybe we can get some fish. Humans eat fish, right?"

"There are fish in this wacky world?" Robert muttered.

"Are there fish in your world?" Candlemon asked.

"Yeah."

"Then why shouldn't there be fish in ours?"

The humans glanced at each other and Daisy decided to answer for them. "I'm not sure how to reply to that."

Robert looked up at the sky and noticed that the sun was almost below the horizon now. He turned back to the others and knew that they were all hungry for some grub. "Okay, how about this? Ryudamon and I will go out to the river and catch us some fish to eat. I think two others should go with us just in case and everyone else should stay here with Babel."

"Whoa, who died and made you leader?" Daisy inquired.

"It doesn't really matter if he is the leader" Rai smiled. "I mean, it's a pretty good plan when you think about it. All right, Candlemon and I will stand here in case it gets dark. You guys can just follow Candlemon's fire to get back here."

"Well I'll go with you" Daisy sighed. "I can't stand Babel's snoring so it's probably better to get away from him for a bit. Come on Salamon."

Betamon decided to join them as they were about to split up. "I'll go with you guys! I'm pretty good at hunting for fish; besides, it's been a long time since I last went swimming. These flippers have got to move around in their natural environment."

Robert didn't mind so the five of the trudged on towards the river with Rai and Janyu waving them off. It didn't take very long, only about five minutes and they could still see a small flame in the distance. Even when it was this dark, they could still hear the rushing of the stream.

"Okay, what do we do now? We don't have fishing rods" Daisy pointed out.

Robert didn't answer right away; he just stared at the river while thinking really hard. "I have absolutely no idea."

"You're kidding right?" Daisy groaned.

"Don't worry Rob" Ryudamon grinned as he dipped his claws into the river. "I'll catch some fish in no time! Just watch! And Betamon will be able to get some fish too. He already dived in!"

Robert grinned as well as he stepped into the river glad that he was wearing shorts but the water was really cold. He released a gasp when it made contact with his skin but got back to his smug grinning once his body adjusted to the temperature. "All right! Then I'm going to try catching some of these suckers with my bare hands too!"

"That's the spirit!" Ryudamon laughed.

One minute into searching for food turned into splashing water on each other. Daisy groaned in irritation as she leaned back against a tree and slid down. "Ugh, boys!"

"You can say that again" Salamon muttered. "I think Betamon went a little more downstream, I'll go check out if he's caught anything yet."

Daisy, deciding that it was more productive to do that than sit around watching the other two be childish decided to follow her partner. "Robert, Ryudamon! We're going to check up on Betamon, you guys better not run off without us!"

"Sure, whatever" Robert said before getting drenched in water thanks to Ryudamon. He turned back around to the laughing dinosaur. "I'm going to get you for that!"

"Yeah right!"

The heavy armor on Ryudamon meant nothing considering how quickly he could dodge his partner. Robert finally stopped after a few minutes of running around and he hunched over, trying to get his breath back. "H-Hey, I think I've run out of fuel. I'm tired."

"Aw, you're no fun" Ryudamon muttered. But out of respect for the boy, he walked back to his partner, only to realize too late that it was a trick. Robert grabbed Ryudamon into a headlock and they fell back into the water together.

"Ha ha! I got you!" Robert laughed.

"Hey, that's not fair, your tricked me!" Ryudamon coughed before he started laughing as well.

"You deserved it" Robert chuckled. He stood back up after he had calmed down. "Well, we should probably see if Betamon caught anything since it's obvious we're not going to get anything for dinner. Where did Daisy say they were heading?"

"Downstream" Ryudamon said in response. "Boy, I sure do hope that Betamon caught enough for all of us."

After meeting up with Daisy, Salamon, and Betamon who apparently caught thirty fish in about ten minutes, they started walking back to Primary Village. They could still see Candlemon's light in the distance but then it started moving around frantically and they started to hear crying. Daisy brushed it off by saying it was Janyu but as they got closer, they realized that there were several voices crying.

"That cannot be good" Robert muttered as he started running.

"Hey, wait!" Daisy calls after him. Ryudamon chases after Robert as well, leaving just Daisy, Salamon, and Betamon to drag a leaf bag full of fish back to the others. And only one of them was remotely strong enough to pull the makeshift sack.

As Robert and Ryudamon got closer to where the rest of their group was waiting for them, they could hear what sounded to be some sort of battle cry. It was protective and it did not sound familiar so it couldn't belong to any of the others. It became even more worrisome when a bolt of electricity lit up the night and struck the spot right in front of them.

"Whoa!" Robert yelled. "One more step and I would've been zapped."

They were now close enough to make out some sort of beast Digimon glaring down at Rai and Janyu. Both of their Digimon partners were standing protectively in front of them and while they were standing firm, Janyu looked as if he was about to break down crying.

"Hey, look Rob, Digi-Eggs" Ryudamon pointed out.

Robert blinked and looked over to notice the round objects behind the protective and unfamiliar beast Digimon. He could also hear babies crying from inside little cradles and he wondered, was this Digimon their caretaker.

"H-Hey, we're not here to hurt anyone" Robert said slowly and calmly.

"You're intruders!" the Digimon interrupted. "You guys are here to hurt the babies! Well I won't let you!"

Robert tried to get closer to the Digimon to try and show that they were friendly but the beast only glared at him threateningly. His tails were raised in the air and sparks were flying out from them. "Super Thunder Strike!"

The attack would've hit Robert hard if Ryudamon hadn't jumped in and used his hard armor to protect them from the attack. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size?" Ryudamon shouted. "I'd be more than happy to oblige with you with a little brawl."

"Yeah! Leave the humans out of this!" Candlemon added with a firm nod from FanBeemon.

None of them really noticed the registration of shock on the Digimon's face when he heard that they were humans. Robert quickly put himself in between his Digimon partner and their attacker. "Wait, Ryudamon! There's no need to fight this guy! He was just trying to protect the eggs and he's right about one thing. We did trespass. I think that it's only fair we apologize."

Ryudamon didn't protest, he knew that the human boy was right but before he could say anything, the other Digimon did.

"I'm sorry; did I just hear that Candlemon say that you guys were humans?" Robert nodded and the unusual Digimon stood up on his hind legs and got closer so that he could examine their faces. "I thought you guys looked strange for Digimon. Could it be that you guys are the humans in the prophecy?"

"The prophecy?" Robert, Janyu, and Rai repeated.

"Right" Ryudamon nodded. "According to the ancient prophecies, creatures known as humans from another world will one day come to ours to save us from the forces of darkness. Otherwise known as Apocalymon, the beast that passed through the wall of fire."

The unfamiliar and now friendly Digimon nodded. "I was worried that you guys were agents sent by Apocalymon to hurt the babies so I was just trying to protect them." He bowed to them respectfully. "I'm sorry for attacking you."

"Don't worry it's not your fault" Rai smiled. "You were just trying to do your job."

Robert smiled as well but it dropped quickly. "Besides, if it's anyone's fault, it's this Apocalymon guy."

"Yeah" FanBeemon buzzed. "Apocalymon has been the source of all the mistrust and destruction of the Digital World. We were all chosen to assist the humans from another world to defeat him and hopefully return peace to our world. We hope you guys are willing to help us."

The insect Digimon was staring hopefully at Janyu but the boy just turned away nervously. "I'm not sure…It sounds really dangerous and besides, we can't really do anything about it. We're just kids."

Rai was just about to agree with him but Robert quickly cut in. "It doesn't matter if we're just kids, I know that we can do anything we put our minds to. We'll take down Apocalymon and bring peace back to the Digital World no matter what it takes."

"That's right!" Ryudamon grinned. "We'll knock down any bad guys that get in our way!"

The caretaker of Primary Village smiled widely as he grabbed Robert's hands and started shaking them in gratitude. "Thanks you so much, the entirety of the Digital World rests in your hands! By the way, my name is Elecmon and if I could do anything to help you on your quest, do not hesitate to ask. I'll be sure to provide whatever I can if it means the defeat of Apocalymon."

"Actually" Rai said thoughtfully. "Is it okay if we sleep here tonight? We're all really tired and we don't really have any place to rest."

"Sure no problem" Elecmon laughed. "I already saw your friend out cold over there. So stay as long as you want! I won't mind."

"Thank you Elecmon."

They introduced themselves to Elecmon and then walked back to where Babel had fallen asleep. Apparently, Rai and Janyu had walked off to see the babies when Elecmon came and attacked them, mistaking them for enemies. It was amazing that the New Yorker was able to sleep through all of that, although, it might've been because he lived in the hustle and bustle of one of the biggest cities on Earth.

"Geez, this guys is the oldest but I'm more responsible than he is" Robert scoffed.

"You're more responsible?" a female voice growled angrily.

Robert turned around in time to have a large fish come flying in and smacking him in the face. He fell backwards and onto the plush ground but the fish to the face still hurt. He looked up to see Daisy glaring down at him, with a furious expression on her face, clearly upset over him ditching her.

"Oh…Hey Daisy…"

"Don't 'Hey Daisy' me! I had to drag all of those fish by myself! No offense to Betamon or Salamon but they don't have that much physical strength and you're a boy! You're supposed to be a bit more chivalrous or at least know that physically, a male can grow more muscles than a girl can!"

"Well I forget that you're a girl sometimes" Robert shrugged innocently, only realizing too late what a mistake that was.

"Will he be okay?" Elecmon asked. He poked the huge bump on Robert's forehead; the human boy was lying out cold along with other boy.

Janyu and Rai both glanced at each other before giving Elecmon a simultaneous nod. "Yeah, he'll be fine."

The spent the rest of their evening, eating their fill in freshly caught fish and helping out with the several baby Digimon. They were all admittedly impressed that one small Digimon like Elecmon was capable of taking care of them. They went to bed on the plush ground with full stomachs and hopeful wishes for the morning. But most of all, the humans were hoping to find out more about why they were called there and why a strange world needed the assistance of human children to get rid of their evil.

"I still can't believe you have to feed two hundred babies by yourself" Robert huffed as he got to his twentieth baby of the day with a milk bottle. "It is absolutely insane."

"Well, it's not usually this many" Elecmon chuckled. "There was a surplus in the birthrate and the Trailmons are running on a tight schedule so they haven't been here recently to actually pick up the babies and take them to their parents or at least to a more suitable home fore them."

"What about the Trailmon we were on yesterday?" Babel asked.

"That was a passenger Trailmon" Elecmon replied. "We need a cargo Trailmon to transport the babies although these precious little guys really shouldn't be considered cargo."

Rai finished drying the cradle that a Punimon had ended up dirtying and looked up from her work. "That reminds me, the Trailmon we were on yesterday said something about 'Azulongmon's Digi-Core', what exactly did he mean by that?"

Elecmon wasn't sure how to answer but lucky for him, Candlemon did. "Ordinarily, Digimon don't have the power to pass through the barrier between worlds unless it's very weak. But that hasn't happened in the past few millennia, so one of our great Sovereigns, Azulongmon, gave that Trailmon the temporary power to travel between the two worlds. Unfortunately, it was only a one way ticket, it's a lot of power used up in that one Digi-Core."

"If the Sovereigns are so powerful then why can't they take care of this Apocalymon?" asked Babel.

Betamon shook his head. "That would never work because the Sovereigns need to stay on the celestial plane of the Digital World. If they were to leave then the entire Digital World would become unstable. Even one of them leaving could cause permanent damage to the digital makeup of the Digital World."

Robert groaned. "I'm tired of listening to you guys, you guys all sound like you want to go home. Well, I'm not like you guys; I don't want to find some easy way out of this. I plan on sticking around and taking down Apocalymon."

"Do you even hear yourself?" Daisy scoffed. "What can we do?"

"A lot more if we just believed in ourselves" Robert retorted. Ryudamon nodded in agreement and he could not be more proud of Robert being his human partner. "Besides, I want to hear more about that prophecy you were talking about Elecmon. Can you tell us more about it?"

"Sorry" Elecmon shrugged. "I only know about the humans coming to our world part, that's the part most Digimon know. If you want to hear the full prophecy, you're going to have to…" The beast Digimon trailed off when he noticed all the baby Digimon had become eerily quiet and they were hissing like danger was close by. "What's wrong?" His fur started bristling the same way it did when he had met Rai and Janyu last night, except this time, it was justified. "Everyone hit the deck!"

"Mirage Blaster!"

Everyone ducked close to the plush ground as possible when an orb of energy flew over them. It blasted a pillar made of blocks nearby and it was completely demolished. But what scared the humans the most was the fact that it left almost nothing behind, the majority of the tower just burst into data.

"What is that?" Janyu whimpered.

They could now see a creature galloping in the scene with a black chain wrapped around his neck. It appeared to be a zebra with the same striped pattern on his fur but unlike zebras in the human world, this one had a horn like a unicorn and wore a mask. It was obvious that he was able to sneak up quietly because the plush ground absorbed the sound that would've been made by his hooves.

Elecmon perked up, recognizing the creature. "That's ShimaUnimon!"

**Digital Analyzer: **ShimaUnimon is a variation of Unimon with a similar appearance aside from the lack of wings and striped fur. They are kind and gentle creatures although they do not hesitate to attack when they feel they are in danger.

"Mirage Blaster!"

The babies started crying as the second explosion resounded through Primary Village. They immediately started gathering up the young Digimon and carrying them as far away from danger as possible. Elecmon on the other hand, ran up to ShimaUnimon in hoped of reasoning with him.

"ShimaUnimon, stop!" Elecmon pleaded. "This isn't like you! You were supposed to help me, help us! You promised to carry these babies back to their homes but then you disappeared! Are you going to break that promise and destroy this village which we worked so hard to protect?"

ShimaUnimon neighed angrily but it didn't seem to be intended for Elecmon, rather it sounded like he was angry with himself. There was pain in his voice as he turned to the little beast Digimon and shot lightning from his horn. "Striped Blaster!"

"Look out!" Robert grabbed Elecmon and rolled over on the ground to dodge the attack. "I am so glad the ground is so soft!"

"ShimaUnimon…" Elecmon whispered. "I can't believe this happened to you."

"You mean he wasn't always this homicidal?" Robert coughed.

"It's that blasted Dark Chain around his neck!" Elecmon was almost in tears as he said it but he was more furious than sad. "That's how Apocalymon takes control of innocent Digimon like ShimaUnimon. Please, Robert, you need to save him, you have to destroy that Dark Chain."

Robert stared into the begging eyes of Elecmon before giving him a nod. "No problem. If all we have to do is get rid of that Dark Chain then we should be able to take care of it easily. Ryudamon, let's take this guy down!"

Ryudamon was one step ahead of him as he stood in front of the brainwashed equestrian. "Right!"

"I'll help too!" FanBeemon buzzed.

"Same here!" Candlemon nodded.

Salamon and Betamon were too weak physically to help out so they focused on trying to get the baby Digimon out of there. Janyu and Rai also focused on that was well while Robert stood like a general, ready to fight ShimaUnimon.

"That kid is out of his mind." Daisy muttered.

Ryudamon opened up his mouth and a barrage of explosive fireballs came flying out. "TERA Burst!"

FanBeemon pointed his stinger at ShimaUnimon and started shooting them forward like poisonous projectiles. "Gear Stinger!"

Candlemon reached up and pulled out a fireball from the top of his flame. He tossed it with perfect aim at ShimaUnimon. "Lava Loogie!"

All three attacks came together and struck the Dark Chain on ShimaUnimon's neck with perfect precision prompting a small cheer to come from Robert but it disappeared when he saw that the chain was still intact. It looked like even the combined power of three Rookie-level Digimon weren't enough to destroy a chain made by an evil like Apocalymon.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Candlemon asked nervously.

"I'll get back to you when I think of it" Robert muttered.

ShimaUnimon didn't give the human boy any time to think though as he shot more lightning at them. Robert was able to jump out of the way but the trio of Digimon got electrocuted.

"No! Ryudamon!" Robert gasped as he picked up the armored Digimon. "Please tell me you're okay."

"I'm fine Rob…You worry too much" Ryudamon replied unconvincingly.

Elecmon was doing a head count of the babies by this point and realized one happened to be missing. "Where is Chibomon?" He looked back down to where the battle had ended all too soon. ShimaUnimon was clearly struggling to control himself while under the influence of the Dark Chain when Elecmon noticed the baby Digimon cowering behind a block. "Chibomon! Get over here, quick!"

Chibomon's eyes opened a little and he started hopping towards Elecmon and the other four humans as quickly as he could. He only made about ten hops before ShimaUnimon took notice of the small blue creature.

"Mirage Blaster!"

"No!" Elecmon shouted.

"Chibomon look out!" Rai cried out.

Robert's body moved on its own as he dropped his partner's body onto the soft ground and ran straight for Chibomon. He picked up the baby Digimon and help him close to his chest, keeping his back pointed to where the attack was coming from. The sphere of energy never hit him though although they could hear the sound of an explosion.

Robert slowly turned his head, not knowing what to expect although he already knew what had happened. "Ryudamon…" he whispered when he saw the immobile form of his partner. He remembered hearing from his partner that his armor was very strong so it could shield him from many attcks but despite its heaviness, he was still quite nimble. "Why did you do that? We've barely known each other for two days but you protected me."

Ryudamon chuckled weakly but it ended quickly, it was too painful for him to actually laugh. "Are you kidding Rob? You're my friend. It has nothing to do with how long we knew each other; it's about how we connected. The way we played in the river last night, doesn't that make us friends?"

Robert didn't even think of it like that, it might explain why he could never hold on to any friends that long. It might also explain his reluctance to actually try again in making new friends in London. "Ryudamon…"

ShimaUnimon was preparing another attack and it was obvious that Robert couldn't count on Ryudamon to protect him again. It was clear to the others as well because they were all yelling at him to get out of there. But all he could focus on was trying to help Ryudamon and break ShimaUnimon from Apocalymon's control.

"Rob, get out here."

Robert shook his head. "There is no way I'm going to abandon a friend." He was hoping for some way they could get out of this and as if to answer his prayers, his D-Sync beeped. He took it off his belt and a small compartment opened up in the back, revealing a bronze key with a dragon's head as the handle. From there, Robert could see a keyhole at the top of his digivice and it was obvious to him what he had to do as he stuck it inside and a red light flashed. "D-Lock 1 Disengaged! Initiate Digivolution!"

Ryudamon's eye became wider as he felt immense power coursing through him. A ring with an ancient form of Digi-Code formed around him and began spinning faster as his data dispersed and rearranged itself to a much stronger form. "Ryudamon Digivolve to…Ginryumon!"

"Mirage Blaster!"

Ginryumon wasn't even fazed when the attack his him, his armor was now a closer part of his body and tougher than it ever was before. He only had three legs and the feet were all similar to that of eagle's talons but it was obviously still a dragon.

**Digital Analyzer: **Ginryumon is known as the 'Silver General', being a natural-born leader. His armor is tougher than that of even Monochromon, virtually nothing can pierce through it. Despite the increased weight in his armor and lack of a fourth leg, Ginryumon is still rather quick on his feet, surprising most of his opponents.

"He digivolved" Salamon gaped in awe.

"Cool!" Betamon breathed. "I always wanted to do that."

Robert was speechless as he stared at the Champion form of his partner. Ginryumon glanced back and Robert caught the smallest sign of a smile before turning back to ShimaUnimon with aggression. "Get him Ginryumon!" Robert smiled.

"Mirage Blaster!"

The orb went right for Ginryumon's face but he pierced through it with his own attack. "Battle Rod Break!" He used his own body as a shield, breaking right through ShimaUnimon's attack with a powerful thrust and slammed into the zebra.

ShimaUnimon neighed he fell back, giving the dragon Digimon a clear shot at the Dark Chain.

"Don't hurt ShimaUnimon!" Elecmon shouted. "Just destroy the chain and he should be back to normal!"

Ginryumon nodded and before ShimaUnimon could launch another attack, the dragon opened his outh and sent sharp spear flying out at the Dark Chain. "Armor Piercing Blade!" The chain shattered into dozens of pieces and fell to the ground without so much as a clatter.

"Huh?" ShimaUnimon seemed to blink; it was hard to tell with his mask on. "What happened to me? I feel like I was in some sort of trance or something."

"It's okay" Ginryumon said with a sigh of relief. "It's all over now."

They cleaned up Primary Village while putting the babies back in their original places. As they were doing so, they watched Elecmon explain to ShimaUnimon about what had happened prompting the equestrian Digimon to apologize several times.

"I never thought that I'd fall under the control of one of Apocalymon's dreaded Dark Chains" he said before clopping over to Robert and Ryudamon. "You two are the ones I have to thank for saving me, correct? Thank you so much for saving me back there!"

Robert chuckled sheepishly as he rubbed the back of his head. "There's no need to do that."

"Yeah" Daisy smirked. "It was just a stroke of luck."

"ShimaUnimon" Rai called, trying to drown out the bickering that immediately arose between the Russian and goggle-head. "If you don't mind me asking, how exactly did the chain get on you anyway? Did it just possess you?"

"And where were you?" Elecmon asked. "You were supposed to come right back after your first delivery set of babies."

"Well, to answer the human's question, the Dark Chains are simply scattered all over the Digital World at random and it was only a stroke of bad luck that I had fallen victim to it" ShimaUnimon neighed. "As for where I was…While I was heading back for my second round, I saw the Trailmon station and one of the Trailmon was still there. I asked him to come and pick up the rest of the babies to make things a whole easier for Elecmon and would you speak of the devil."

At that moment, a worm Trailmon came chugging into Primary Station in the distance and he blew his whistle to signal to them that he had arrived.

"Great!" Babel sighed. "I'm glad that solves one problem but there's still another thing. What are we supposed to do? We don't belong in this world!" He held up his hand before Robert could mention anything about kicking Apocalymon's butt, assuming he had one. "Even if we do find some way to defeat some evil mastermind, how do you propose we get back home?"

Janyu placed an egg down into the soft ground and looked over to Elecmon. "Elecmon, before ShimaUnimon came, you were telling us something about where we can go to learn the full prophecy. What were you saying?"

"Hm? Oh right!" Elecmon smiled. "I was just saying that you kids would have to go to the Mystic Temple all the way in Magic Village in order to learn about the complete prophecy. Unfortunately, you can't really get there by Trailmon and I don't have a clue on how to get there. Only those who are given permission by a mage Digimon can actually get in."

"Great, just great!" Babel moaned. "Just where are we supposed to find a mage Digimon?!"

Candlemon raised his hand. "Um…Actually, Magic Village just so happens to be my home…"

"Really?" Rai blinked before smiling widely. "That's perfect! Then you can get us in!"

"Yeah…" Candlemon nodded nervously. It wasn't like he couldn't get them in; it just wouldn't be easy for him to face his past. Although the others were all too excited over the fact that were finally be able to get somewhere in this bizarre world.

"That's perfect!" Robert cheered. "Then I say we head over to Magic Village ASAP."

"Let me take you part of the way there" ShimaUnimon offered. "I am needed here to protect it from future dangers but I can take you to the next Trailmon station since most Trailmon stop at Primary Village and head back the way they came."

"That would be great!" Ryudamon grinned.

"I still don't think we should stay in this world for too long but it beats just waiting around for an answer" Daisy scoffed.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Babel chuckled. "Let's go!"

ShimaUnimon turned to Elecmon. "Where did you put the spare wagon I asked you to keep safe? I think I lost the other when I got possessed by the Dark Chain."

Elecmon and ShimaUnimon ran off in another direction before coming back with a covered wagon for the humans and their partners to ride in. Elecmon latched it onto ShimaUnimon while they stepped inside; there was enough space for them and the extra food Elecmon packed for them.

"Thank you for everything Elecmon" Rai smiled as ShimaUnimon started galloping away from Primary Village.

"Yeah, we'll be sure to visit again one day, hopefully after we take down Apocalymon" Robert added.

"Stay safe until ShimaUnimon gets back!" Ryudamon waved.

Elecmon's and the babies' forms got smaller as they got farther away from them. They could still faintly here them saying goodbye to them though.

"Okay, we have a destination in mind now so that's progress" Salamon said. "But I have to wonder…How this ragtag team is going to take down a powerful Digimon like Apocalymon. Do any of you have any idea or battle strategy?"

"Not really" Robert admitted. He then pulled out the bronze key he had used for Ryudamon's evolution and stared at it. "What I really wonder about is Ginryumon. I'm amazed that this key pooped out of my D-Sync and suddenly, I knew exactly what to do. It was like some sort of ethereal presence had taken over."

"Maybe a bit of that Dark Chain fell on you" Babel chuckled. "But I agree with you. I wonder if all our D-Syncs have keys in them to help our partners evolve."

"Maybe that's why this world needed humans" Rai suggested. "Because the strongest Digimon need to evolve so they need our power to activate the keys or something like that."

"As much as that makes…" Diasy muttered. "I think we're still going to need a better explanation for this whole thing. We've already been gone from Earth for a legitimate twenty-four hours, do you guys have any idea how worried our families must be?"

The humans became silent as they thought about home and how their parents must be feeling. The Digimon had no idea what to say to get their minds off of it so they remained silent as well until Ryudamon piped up.

"Either way, I'm sure we'll find a way to defeat Apocalymon and get you guys back home. And I'm sure that you guys helping us digivolve will be the key to that."

Robert chuckled as he flipped the key in his hand. "I sure hope you're right about that."

-X-

**Wow! So it seems that the first generation of Digidestined used keys in order to get their partners to higher levels. Robert seems more than determined to tackle this challenge of fighting Apocalymon though along with Ryudamon. But what kind of past is Candlemon afraid to face back in his home village? You can only find out by tuning into Digimon: Children of the Past!**

**Hey, I know this is a little slow paced but the beginning of almost every anime is right? I hope you guys enjoyed this little segment. I'll try to fit two digivolutions into the second chapter. Things will definitely speed up once they all reach the Champion level at least once. Don't forget to leave a review and I hope to see you all in the next update!**


	3. Buzzing Back Bullies

**Is it wrong to favor the writing and preparation of this story of Children of the Present? I didn't hear a 'no'. Anyway, I'm glad I got to know at least one of you enjoyed that last chapter. So, here is my newest chapter and I just hope you all enjoy this one too. Remember to drop a review because I'd love to hear your feedback. Enjoy!**

-X-

**Toy Station – 1:16 PM**

"It looks like this is as far as I can take you" ShimaUnimon neighed, stopping at a Trailmon station made of giant Lego blocks. Apparently, they were at Toy Station, none of them really thought the sign was necessary to tell them that. "You just keep following these tracks to Shellfish Beach and then veer off into the forest. I can never remember what direction it's in but just keep going from there and you should reach Magic Village."

"Thanks ShimaUnimon!" Robert grinned as they all stepped out of the covered wagon.

They all said their goodbyes and soon enough, the equestrian Digimon galloped back to Primary Village.

"Okay" Daisy said as she studied the Trailmon schedule posted in the station. "It looks like the next Trailmon to Shellfish Beach won't be here for another hour or so. Do you guys think we should just keep following the tracks to the next station or just kill time here?"

"I think we should stay, it might be a better idea than just running off on our own" Babel suggested.

"If Babel says it's a good idea then I think so too!" Betamon chimed.

While the others were taking a vote, Robert was looking off into the distance, squinting to make sure he wasn't seeing some sort of illusion. "Do I see a huge amusement park or is that just my imagination playing tricks on me?" he asked out loud.

"That's Toy Carnival!" Ryudamon said excitedly. "I always wanted to go there! I had no idea it was here!"

"Really?" Daisy blanched. "I mean, we're at Toy Station."

Ryudamon shrugged. "I guess it never occurred to me."

"Well I think we should go" Robert said. "I haven't been to an amusement park in such a long time and it could be a lot of fun." He looked to the others to see if they were with him as well although it didn't really seem like they were.

"We'd probably be gone for more than an hour, we'd miss our train" Daisy reminded him in an irritated tone. "Geez, how can you be so nonchalant at a time like this? We're trapped in a world where nothing makes sense to us and you want to play around? Do you even realize how stupid your own ideas are?"

"Well…" Rai tried to soothe Daisy's riled up emotions. "We are kind of stressed out and tired. Maybe a trip to Toy Carnival would be good for us? You know, to distress ourselves. Besides, I've never been to an amusement park before and I really want to ride in a Ferris wheel."

Daisy still seemed like she was against the idea but the oldest in their group looked like he was all for it.

"I think it'll be fun" Babel chuckled. "I mean, I was supposed to go to Coney Island the day after we came to this world so Toy Island may be a good substitute since I was really looking forward to it."

"Babel, what's a Coney Island?" Betamon asked his partner.

"It's an amusement park back in the Human World" Robert answered.

"I'm still not convinced" Daisy muttered. "Babel, do you really think that just because you missed out on a day of fun back home, it's supposed to persuade me into going with you guys? I'd rather just wait for the Trailmon by myself."

Robert and Babel looked to each other and shrugged before running off towards Toy Carnival with their partners in hot pursuit. "Suit yourself!"

"Wha?!" Daisy started as she uncrossed her arms in surprise. "Well, if you guys are really going!"

Rai giggled as Daisy picked up Salamon in her arms and ran after them. She then turned to the only other human left with her. "Janyu, aren't you going to come with us?" she asked. He had been silent the entire time and it only occurred to her now that something may be wrong with him.

"I…" Janyu hesitated. "I'm just not sure if going to an amusement park is the best idea right now. I mean, we really should be trying to head to Magic Village as soon as possible."

"I don't think there's really any need to rush" Rai said after a moment of silence. "Besides, I never would've thought that you could agree with Daisy on something."

"Yeah" FanBeemon buzzed. He sounded even more concerned for Janyu than Rai did. "Is there something else bothering you Janyu?"

Janyu stared at Toy Carnival in the distance before turning away with an embarrassed expression on his face, but he didn't want Rai or his partner seeing it, not that he was hiding it very well. It wasn't difficult for Rai to figure out what was really going on through Janyu's head.

"That's right, that first day we all met; you told us that you were afraid of heights" Rai said. "So I guess you just don't want to ride on the roller coasters or the Ferris wheel." Janyu didn't respond so the Indian girl figured her intuition was probably correct. She sighed and grabbed his hand, pulling him towards Toy Carnival anyway. "There are more to carnivals than rides you know, we can play lots of games. Besides, the Ferris wheel isn't scary."

"Yeah, Janyu" FanBeemon buzzed beside him. "Besides, if you get scared, don't worry, I'll be right there by your side."

Janyu looked downward but the corners of his mouth were now slightly pointed upwards at least. "…Thanks."

"There you guys are!" Robert exclaimed when he saw them coming. "They're having this big special today. Ten visitors in one group and we get to go in for free which is lucky for us."

"I still don't think this is a good idea" Daisy grumbled.

"So you say" Babel smirked. "But here you are with us."

"I just don't want to end up alone in this world" Daisy retorted indignantly.

Robert was talking to the ToyAgumon behind the ticket sales booth and soon they were admitted in. The little dinosaur made up of colorful blocks opened up the gates for them with a cheerful smile. "Welcome to Toy Carnival, I hope you enjoy your stay here!"

Rai giggled at her new friends' behavior before pulling Janyu in Toy Carnival, quickly followed by the others. "Okay, how about we meet each other in about two hours at the entrance" Rai suggested. "We'll miss the next Trailmon but we should be able to catch the one right after."

"That sounds good to me" Babel nodded before picking up Betamon. "Come on, let's go check out the coasters!"

"Yeah!" the amphibious Digimon cheered.

"You have fun with that" Robert called after the older boy and his partner. "Ryudamon and I will hit the food stands! I'm feeling a little hungry. How does that sound?"

"Definitely!" Ryudamon grinned.

Daisy watched them run off and coincidentally, right after they turned a corner and were out of sight, her stomach growled loudly. She blushed in embarrassment as the other two remaining humans and their partners stared at her in amazement. They never would've believed that someone like her could make such a noise.

"Sounds like you're a little hungry too" Salamon remarked. "Why don't we go over to the snack bar? I still have some leftover Digi-dollars to spend so you don't have to worry about paying for it."

"That sounds great…" Daisy sighed. She turned to Rai and Janyu. "I expect to see you two back here in two hours and no later. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to refill my stomach."

"That's an interesting way of saying 'eat'" Candlemon commented as the Russian girl ran off with her partner.

Janyu looked around the carnival with an expression of awe, it was his first time ever being in a place like this and even though that was the same for Rai, she was less amazed. Instead she was more amused over the older child's reaction to stepping into an amusement park for the first time.

"Janyu, why don't we go together? This way you'll have someone other than FanBeemon by your side?" she offered.

"Huh? Are you sure?" Janyu asked. "I don't want to trouble you and besides, you'd probably have more fun if it was just you and Candlemon. I'm not very interesting…"

"It doesn't matter if you're not very interesting" Rai laughed. "I just like being around you, is that so wrong?"

"Well…Okay…" Janyu nodded. "So where do you want to go to first?"

Rai put a finger to her chin as she thought about it. Her eyes immediately fell upon the large spinning wheel above her. "…The Ferris wheel."

Janyu was hesitant but he didn't want to make Rai feel sad on her first trip to the amusement park so he followed her to the Ferris wheel. And it was probably one of the best experiences of his life. From there, they spent the rest of their two hours playing games like the bumper cars, ring toss, whack-a-mole, and balloon darts. They even got their picture taken with the mascot of Toy Carnival, a friendly and playful Monzaemon.

"It's kind of ironic that we got to take a photo of a giant stuffed bear while holding a smaller stuffed version of that same bear" Janyu laughed. Rai agreed while holding the Monzaemon doll they had won back at the ring toss.

"And this cotton candy is delicious!" FanBeemon buzzed. "I wonder what the recipe for it is. Does it have honey?"

"I'm not sure" Candlemon smiled. "But it's definitely tasty! Not very filling, but tasty!"

They stopped at the entrance of Toy Carnival where they were greeted by Daisy, Babel, Salamon, and Betamon. It seemed like the only ones missing at the moment were Robert and Ryudamon and who knows where the two of them had run off to. Knowing them, they probably forgot that they were supposed to meet the others at this time.

"Ugh, I knew we shouldn't have left them alone!" Daisy grumbled. "Should we go out and look for them?"

"They might come back at anytime" Babel reminded her. "For all we know, they could be on a ride and they haven't gotten off it just yet."

"Fine" Daisy groaned. "We'll wait a little bit longer for the idiot. But seriously, just because he found a way to evolve his partner to the Champion level and suddenly he has to walk all over us! He does realize that we're in a really precarious situation if we don't find a way out of this…" The others were now just conversing with each other and completely ignoring the other human and she soon realized this. "Hey! Are you guys even listening to me?!"

And so they all waited for the last two members of their group. Five minutes passed, which soon became ten, which soon became half an hour, which soon became Daisy banging her had against the brick wall until Rai stopped her.

"That's it, we're looking for him" Babel huffed. He slapped his knees and then tried to stand back up but his legs had fallen asleep while his was in his crouched position so he groaned in pain. "You guys go on ahead. I'll ask the ToyAgumon at the ticket booth to keep an eye out for Rob and to call us on the PA system if he does."

"Okay, we'll be right back if we see Rob" Rai nodded.

"I'll drag him back by his hair" Daisy added angrily.

"I hope we find him soon" Janyu nodded. "We already missed the second Trailmon."

The group split up so that it was a pair with one human and their Digimon partner. They hunted all around the amusement park for Robert and it wasn't long before two pairs ended up bumping into each other. That group just so happened to be Daisy and Babel.

"Daisy, check out what I just found" Babel called over to her.

She walked over to him and looked in his hands to see a red D-Sync. "That's Robert's! Do you think that means he's in trouble? Where did you find it?"

"Over there" Babel gestured towards a narrow path between to snack booths.

The two humans nodded to each other before going through the narrow path with the Digimon following right behind them. The path soon widened enough so that they could stand next to each other and as they kept walking, they found another path branching out to the right and inside, and they found a room filled with electronics and random machinery.

"Let me go!" a familiar voice shouted out desperately.

"Yeah, we did nothing wrong to you!" another voice added.

"That sounded like Robert and Ryudamon" Betamon murmured.

"What are we going to do?" Salamon asked.

A third, monotone voice joined them, one absolutely unfamiliar to them. "Yes, whatever shall you do?"

The four of them froze as they turned their heads slowly to see a yellow floating gear staring at them but the gear points were points rather than squares. He stared at them expressionlessly which made sense since it was a robot.

"Um…Who are you?" Daisy asked.

The Digimon stared back at her. "I'm Solarmon and you're not allowed here. This place is for authorized personnel only."

"Be careful Daisy!" Salamon said. "Solarmon is one of Apocalymon's goons! He's one of the few who doesn't need a Dark Chain to do his bidding."

"And I'm Hagurumon" another robotic voice said from inside the narrow path.

They turned around again but wires suddenly came flying in and tangled them up, muffling their cries for help as they were dragged into the secret room. The humans were placed and strapped onto tables, right beside Robert who was strapped onto the other table next to them. He was missing his goggles though. The two Digimon were thrown into a cage along with Ryudamon who could only watch helplessly.

"I found the human's D-Sync, Hagurumon" Solarmon droned.

"Perfect!" Hagurumon replied. "Apocalymon will be very pleased with us. Now take the other two humans' D-Syncs."

"You stay away from them!" Babel shouted.

"Yeah, and give me back my goggles!" Robert added.

The floating gears ignored them as they took their digivices. Hagurumon drifted to a computer and stared at the screen, he clicked on a few buttons and something seemed to scan Robert.

"Hm…" Hagurumon muttered. "It seems that there is something interfering with the scan."

"What are you going to do to us?" Daisy asked in a panicked tone.

"You two better stay away from them!" Betamon snapped.

"But I don't think we can do that" Hagurumon stated as he drifted next to Robert's table. "Our lord and master, Apocalymon told us that we can do whatever we want with the humans as long as we dispose of them afterward. And what we want to do is research them, these organic creatures are so fascinating so we want to learn everything we can about them. So first, we need to scan their data but these…pieces of fabric seem to be in the way. We must remove them!"

"Wait what!" a blushing Robert exclaimed.

"Can't you leave them on?" Daisy inquired. "I'm way too young to be seeing this!"

Hagurumon signaled to Solarmon who floated up to the wall and placed himself into an indentation shaped like him. His eyes began glowing and the wires form earlier came in and wrapped them around a panicking Robert. As soon as the shirt was removed and the pants were just about to, Daisy released a shrill scream, not knowing what else to do.

Rai stopped in her tracks when the scream reached her ears. "That was Daisy!"

"She sounds like she's in trouble!" Candlemon chimed.

Rai was just about to go investigate when Janyu's voice caught her attention.

"Rai!" the bespectacled boy shouted. He caught up to her just in time with FanBeemon by his side. "FanBeemon was just searching from the air and he saw Daisy and Babel get kidnapped by some Digimon. They were over there."

"I guess that explains why I just heard Daisy scream" Rai nodded. "Robert and Ryudamon must be with them as well."

"Then let's go!" Candlemon said.

The two of them quickly ran into the alleyway and found themselves looking into the same room that Daisy and Babel had been looking into earlier. All they could really see was unknown machinery and wires but they could definitely hear the voices of their human companions coming from inside.

"Wait, don't take of my underwear!"

"Kya! I don't want to look! Why do I have to be the one next to him?"

"I almost forgot that you were a girl until you said that."

"Shut it, Babel!"

Rai didn't even hesitate to run in with Candlemon and FanBeemon running in after her. She stopped midway while the Digimon continued on and she looked back to Janyu was trembling in fear. "Janyu, what's wrong? Come on, we have to go save them."

"I can't" Janyu muttered. "What if there's a really dangerous Digimon in there?"

"Then we'll just have to beat them" Rai rpelied.

The Chinese boy shook his head, he was embarrassed that a girl younger than him was so brave but he just couldn't help it. "How? What if they're really strong? We can't digivolve our partners like Robert can. And what if FanBeemon…what if he gets killed?"

"That won't happen!"

"How do you know?"

Somehow, Rai knew the answer. "If you believe strongly enough than you'll be able to protect him with your power."

"My…power? But what power do I have?"

"Your heart and your emotions; put them to good use by showing the Digimon we never surrender because as humans, we are stronger than any obstacle that gets in our way!" Rai said firmly. "If you believe in that then anything can happen."

"…Rai…How can you be so brave and strong?"

Rai turned away. "I'm not…I'm just trying to be…"

"Lava Loogie!"

"Gear Stinger!"

The sound of explosions was soon followed by mechanical voices yelping in surprise. The two human ran into the room to find the other strapped to tables and their partners trapped in a cage. They captured cheered when they saw their rescuers.

"Rai, Janyu! Thank goodness!" Daisy sighed in relief. "Quick! Grab Robert's pants and put them on him!"

Hagurumon and Solarmon shook away their disorientation and glared at their attackers while Rai opened up the cage and Janyu was freeing the humans from their straps.

"We're not going to let you get away!" Hagurumon hummed angrily.

"That's right!" Solarmon agreed. "We'll destroy you for Lord Apocalymon!"

The other three Digimon joined FanBeemon and Candlemon. "Oh yeah? And how are you going to do that? We overpower and outnumber you!" Ryudamon growled.

"You're right about that" Hagurumon grinned.

"So right, so right!" Solarmon chimed.

"But Apocalymon has given us a special gift just to defeat you brats!" Hagurumon laughed.

The two gears floated higher and fit themselves into two more gear indentations. As they started turning, a small section of the floor opened up and something started to rise from underneath them. What arose was a Digimon with the appearance of a child wearing a homemade Halloween costume with his weapon of choice being a giant pen clipped to his back. They gasped when they saw the Dark Chain wrapped around his right arm.

"This is Omekamon and he is very excited to play with you" Hagurumon laughed.

**Digital Analyzer: **A Digimon born from a certain computer's design drawing. It is a fairly young and naturally clumsy creature and since it doesn't know what it is particularly, it dresses up like his hero, Omnimon. The giant pen it carries on his back was the same software used to create him but now he uses it has his weapon.

"Hmph" Ryudamon scoffed. "Come on Rob, let's show them why they shouldn't mess with us! Digivolve me to Ginryumon!"

Robert had just finished putting his shirt back on and he gave his partner a firm nod, not noticing that the two gear Digimon had made their escape while they were distracted by Omekamon's appearance until… "You got it buddy…Wait, where'd my D-Sync go? And my goggles! They're gone too!"

"My D-Sync is gone too" Babel realized.

"Those two metal heads still have them!" Daisy remembered.

"What?!" their partners exclaimed.

"Those D-Syncs are very important for us to digivolve!" Salamon said. "We have to go get them back or the entire fate of the Digital World may as well be doomed!" She was about to leap out the exit and chase down their captors when Omekamon got in their way.

"Lava Loogie!"

The cones taped on to the top of Omekamon's head burst into flames and in a panic, he started trying to put it out. It would be funny if they weren't supposed to be fighting him.

"You guys go" Rai said. "Janyu and I can handle Omekamon."

The three humans and their partners who had lost their digivices ran off, pursuing Hagurumon and Solarmon. Once they were gone, Rai stared at Omekamon who had put out the fire with a sympathetic expression. Janyu took notice and he had to wonder why she looked she felt sorry for him when he remembered a photo he had seen earlier that day. It was a 'Missing Digimon' poster of Omekamon and Pandamon told them what had happened.

Omekamon was the clown of the big top in Toy Carnival, everyone made fun of him because he could almost do nothing. He just stood there, did silly things and everyone laughed at him. Even though he wasn't even aware of his own situation, he knew he was being teased and that made him feel sad. But he couldn't do anything about it, because his boss, Piedmon, wouldn't let him. It had been presumed he had run away after having enough of Piedmon's torment and the clown Digimon was fired form Toy Carnival.

"Omekamon was being bullied…" Janyu muttered.

"And he still is…" Rai sighed sadly.

When Omekamon spoke, it surprised them both. Since the only possessed Digimon they fought was ShimaUnimon, they had no idea that they were capable of talking in the state. "Don't laugh at me. Don't pity me. I don't like you! You're mean…"

"He sounds broken and confused" Candlemon commented. "How am I supposed to attack a guy like that?"

Omekamon took off the pen on his back and he launched it at them like a rocket, not just at the Digimon but at the humans too. "Graffiti Rocket!" It didn't damage them physically; the pen just exploded and stained them all in ink.

"Ugh, this is going to take forever to wash off of my wings" FanBeemon buzzed.

Janyu was knocked back in surprise and his glasses fell, not that they would be useful anymore covered in ink. Rai helped him up but right after she did that, they all realized that it was getting increasingly difficult to breathe.

"What's going on?" Candlemon coughed. "I'm losing air!"

"It's the paint fumes!" Janyu answered. He was wiping the ink off of his glasses using the back of his shirt which was luckily left unstained. "They're everywhere!"

Candlemon was rubbing the ink out of his eyes when Omekamon charged at him. "Omeka Kick!" The attack was surprisingly powerful and would've been fatal if he had crashed into the machinery but Rai caught him at the risk of getting burned.

"Candlemon! Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I think so."

Omekamon picked up his pen and walked over to the two of them. "You're mean, I don't like you! Stop laughing. Stop laughing. Stop laughing!" He raised the pen, ready to strike and Janyu didn't know what to do. Rai and Candlemon were defenseless and FanBeemon couldn't fly if his wings were covered in wet ink. Janyu wanted to run away, far, far away; back home preferably but he knew he couldn't just leave Rai there. She helped him so many times even though they were complete strangers; it was time to pay back the favor.

"No!" Janyu ran straight for them and pushed Omekamon to the ground. Omekamon got back up quickly, dragging the human along with him too. The mistreated Digimon focused his attacks on Janyu who was putting his tai-chi lessons to good use by eluding every one of Omekamon's attack.

"You deserve this!" Omekamon said, tears starting to form in his eyes. "You always point and laugh at me for years now! I hate it! You're a bully! Leave me alone, leave me alone; please…Leave me alone! I just want you to stop laughing!"

Janyu soon ran out of space to keep dodging so he ended up falling to the floor on his butt but he didn't stop glaring up at Omekamon. His attacker would've struck too if Janyu hadn't snapped loudly causing him to stop midway. "If you're going to attack us then you're no better than those bullies! I've been hiding behind my friend for year and I thought that was shameful. I wanted nothing more to fight back but he always told me not to, it would just make me a bully. And now I see why! Omekamon…You just want friends who care about you…"

"I…do…?"

Janyu nodded, his glare fading to a smile when he saw the redness disappearing in Omekamon's eyes. "If you want, we can be your friends. And I know that Pandamon would like you be your friend too, he's been worried about ever since you vanished. So please…Don't fight."

Omekamon lowered his weapon and he would've dropped it to the ground if the Dark Chain on his arm didn't start glowing erratically. It seemed like it became painful for Omekamon as evident by how he was screaming all of a sudden. The chain soon stopped glowing but now his eyes were glowing red again and no more words were said, simply actions as he raised his pen again.

"Stop laughing…Bully…"

Janyu would've been done for if it not had been for his partner buzzing in and pushing Omekamon out of the way. When Janyu had flinched in surprise, he heard a jingle from his belt and looked down. The glowing from the Dark Chain had apparently distracted them from the glowing coming from his own D-Sync after he had given that speech.

He pulled out his digivice and saw that a compartment had opened up to reveal a bronze key with the base being a hexagon, presumably a honeycomb. Inside the hexagon was an indentation of a bumblebee. "This is…" Janyu whispered before looking up to see his partner being sent across the room. "FanBeemon, I'm going to give you an upgrade!"

FanBeemon huffed as he got back up and smile at his human partner. "Then let's do it!"

Janyu jammed the key right into the hole at the top of his D-Sync. "D-Lock 1 Disengaged! Initiate Digivolution!"

FanBeemon was enveloped in a bright green light as a ring made up of digi-code appeared around him. His data rearranged itself from one body part to another, shaping him and giving him a more robotic form. "FanBeemon digivole to…Waspmon!"

**Digital Analyzer: **Waspmon is a cyborg Digimon and a natural carrier of the X-Antibody. From an organic species, it has become much more efficient with the capabilities of hovering rather than flapping in order to fly. They are able to move rapidly in various directions, up, down, forward, back, left, or right, in order to defend against any enemy. Furthermore, their stingers are replaced with a powerful laser cannon giving them incredible attack power.

"That's amazing…" Rai gasped in awe.

"It certainly is" Candlemon nodded.

The only one not impressed was Omekamon. "Graffiti Rocket!

Waspmon's information was proven accurate when he hovered right, picking up Janyu in the process while avoiding the pen rocket. It splattered against the wall at the same time Janyu was put back on the ground, next to Rai.

"Thanks Waspmon" Janyu smiled.

"No problem" Waspmon nodded. "But what do you want me to do about Omekamon?"

"Just destroy the Dark Chain on his arm, which should free him from Apocalymon's control" Janyu told him. "He's not a bad Digimon, he's just misunderstood."

"Right."

Waspmon got closer to his opponent who sent another one of his powerful kicks at him. Waspmon's speed and ability to move around like the queen in a chess game allowed him to avoid the attack and the onslaught of kicks that came afterwards.

"He's surprisingly fast" Janyu muttered. Then he remembered another thing that was mentioned in the analysis, Omekamon is supposed to be naturally clumsy. That meant they could use one of his previous attacks against him. "Waspmon, fly over to your right!"

Waspmon did exactly as he was told and after reaching that spot, was forced to move upwards to dodge another kick. But this time, Omekamon landed on the paint from his Graffiti Rocket attack causing him to slip and fall onto his back.

"Now's your time to attack!" Janyu shouted.

"Right" Waspmon hummed. "Turbo Stinger!"

He fired a rapid-fire salvo from his laser cannon, precisely aiming for the Dark Chain and when the beam made contact, the evil mind control device shattered into pieces.

Rai and Janyu got up and cheered for the insect Digimon. "All right Waspmon, you did it!" they cried out happily.

"Huh?" Omekamon blinked. "What happened?"

Janyu went over and helped him up. "It's okay. You don't have to be afraid any longer."

**Toy Carnival – 4:09 PM**

"Stop those gears from getting away!" Robert shouted.

"Now there's a sentence I never thought would be said" Daisy huffed.

It didn't seem like the other two were used to this much physical activity but lucky for them, Babel would jog almost every single night so he was able to speed past the other humans and catch up with the gears. Betamon, who was in his arms, jumped out and tackled Hagurumon to the ground while his partner held down Solarmon.

"Ha!" Babel said triumphantly. "Looks like we finally caught up to you." He took the D-Syncs from them and returned them to their rightful owners. "Red for Rob, pink for Daze, and gray for me."

"Please, don't call me 'Daze'" Daisy muttered as she attached the digivice back onto her belt. She turned her head over to the left a little to see Pandamon running towards them with chains to keep Apocalymon's goons as captives.

Right after they made sure that Solarmon and Hagurumon were unable to escape, they hurried back to where they had been trapped so that they could assist Janyu and Rai. In a few minutes, they made it back into the small room to find that the battle had already finished but not before Robert charged in and slipped on the ink. He slid across the room and crashed into the opposite wall, prompting an 'Ooh' from everyone else.

"Are you okay Rob?" Ryudamon asked.

"I think so…" he groaned unconvincingly.

"Whoa" Babel and Janyu breathed when they saw Waspmon floating in the middle of the room.

"Janyu, don't tell me this used to be FanBeemon" Daisy said.

Janyu nodded with a smile. "Yeah, that's right. It's amazing right? He was able to digivolve!" He then looked over to Omekamon who was shyly hiding behind him. "Come on Omekamon, there's no need to be shy. There's Pandamon, right there."

Pandamon reacted when he heard his name and he walked towards Omekamon. "Omekamon, is that really you? Where have you been all this time?"

Omekamon bowed down to Pandamon as if the bear was some sort of lord and if he didn't do so, then he would end up getting punished. "I'm sorry for disappearing like that; please don't hurt me like Master Piedmon does all the time! I can't take spinning sword torture anymore!"

Pandamon paused as he took in what his subordinate just told him. He had heard of spinning sword torture from the Mammothmon who had worked with Piedmon, apparently, he straps Omekamon to a spinning wheel and then throws swords at him, they aren't real but it is absolutely terrifying for the victim.

"Omekamon…" Pandamon muttered guiltily. "I'm so sorry for putting you up with me. I had no idea that Piedmon was so cruel. I already fired him…So you can come back."

"But…I don't want to be laughed at anymore" Omekamon whined hopelessly. "Everyone just points and laughs and they make fun of me. I don't like it Pandamon!"

"…I'm sorry…" Pandamon said. "I didn't know. I know, how about you work for me instead. All we need to do is greet visitors and make sure they're happy and I'll make sure they won't laugh at you. No, I promise you that."

Omekamon was getting teary-eyed knowing that someone he worked with was so kind to him, he ended up embracing the stuffed panda. "Thank you, Pandamon!"

"No problem…" Pandamon chuckled lightheartedly.

"Um…I don't mean to interrupt but…" said Rai who was staring at the chains Pandamon was holding which led out the door. "Why exactly are you holding those chains?"

"Well, we captured those pesky goons of Apocalymon" Babel said proudly. "Correction, Betamon and I were the ones who captured them."

"Yeah, whatever" Robert scoffed as he rubbed his sore back. "But casn your partner digivolve?"

Waspmon hovered Robert's shoulder with Janyu standing by him. "You realize that I can digivolve too now, right?"

"Sh-shut up!"

Rai cleared her throat to get their attention once more. They all turned to the youngest human there and noticed that she was holding the end of the chains and they were tied to absolutely nothing. "If I'm not mistaken, Solarmon and Hagurumon shouldn't be invisible."

"They escaped!" they shouted.

"As expected of Apocalymon's minions" Pandamon muttered.

"You're the one who said they wouldn't get away!" Daisy, Babel, and Robert snapped.

"That's fine" Janyu smiled. "Besides, if our job in the Digital World is to stop Apocalymon's reign of terror, then we're going to end up finding Hagurumon and Solarmon again. Eventually, we'll be able to defeat them."

"That's my partner for sure" Waspmon chuckled. "Calm until the very end."

"Since when?!" Daisy and Babel yelled.

Salamon was able to calm her partner down. "Well, we wasted enough time here. It's about time we go back to the Trailmon station and get on the next Trailmon to Shellfish Beach." Just like last time, she was about to leap out the door and head back but Pandamon stopped her by coughing.

"Wait, you guys are going to Shellfish Beach by Trailmon?"

"Yeah" Daisy nodded. "Why? Is there something wrong with that?"

"Well…" Pandamon started. "You see, the railroads from Toy Carnival to any Trailmon stations forward were all destroyed in a battle between Apocalymon's forces and some forest Digimon so no Trailmon can go to Shellfish Beach as of now. So unfortunately, you're either stuck here or you may have to walk all the way there if it's urgent."

The humans and their partners stared as Pandamon finished talking before collapsing to the floor in hopeless heaps.

"You mean we wasted so much time here for nothing?!" Daisy screeched.

Janyu felt like they had spent more time than they needed too as well but he felt like he really accomplished something. He was able to get FanBeemon to digivolve for the first time but not only that, he helped a bullied Digimon make a friend. "I'm kind of glad we wasted our time here. After all, we all need a break now and then."

Waspmon nodded in agreement before slowly reverting to FanBeemon. "Yeah. And let's do our best to save the Digital World."

"I'm with you."

-X-

**Wow, it looks like this team couldn't have gotten a better teammate in their situation. And it's great that Omekamon has a friend with someone he works with. But how long is going to take them to actually reach Magic Village? And what are they going to do about the escaped Hagurumon and Solarmon? Find out next time on the next Digimon: Children of the Past!**

**Okay, so I'm a little disappointed that I couldn't fit two evolutions in this chapter but that's okay! It might be better, slowly getting to know each one before they get their partners to evolve. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I can't wait for you guys to see what happens next! Please review in the box below!**


	4. Darcmon's Lesson

**On the day I'm updating this, I had to babysit my neighbor's dog and my seven year old cousin, fun times. They're not so bad. I'm just really tired right now. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter. There are some sensitive topics in here but I promise you, I don't mean any of it. I was just trying to get into the possible mindset of people who lived in the seventies. I hope you enjoy and please leave a review! **

-X-

**West Egg Village – 10:27 AM**

"West Egg Village?" Rai read.

"Hey, that's the same name as where the Great Gatsby is set" Robert chuckled. He then looked over to Daisy. "There's a character in there named Daisy too, maybe you'll fall in love with a rich guy here and then kill your husband's lover."

"How is that funny?" Daisy inquired irately.

"Well, it sounded funnier in my head" he replied.

"You know, I never would've pegged you for the fine literature type of guy" Rai giggled.

"I'm not" Robert said. "But my dad is and when I told him I was bored on my flight to London, he gave me that stupid book to read. But after reading the first two chapters, I was already too deep in to stop. At least I'll be prepared for a book report and impress the teacher."

Babel's stomach started growling. "Well, I don't really care about the Great Gatsby but I do know that when there's a village, then there must be a place to eat. So I say, let's go and get some food." The others, except for Daisy cheered with him as they made their way into the village.

The Russian girl stopped them though. "Hold it!" she shouted with an air of absolute authority. "Are you guys forgetting our mission? We're supposed to be going to Shellfish Beach and then Magic Village; we've wasted enough time by walking."

"But a little food never hurt anybody" Rai said.

"Yeah" Betamon agreed. "Besides, we won't make it very far on empty stomachs."

Salamon brushed up against her partner's leg when Daisy wasn't budging. "You know, I'm kind of hungry too and I'm also really tired. We haven't really had anything to eat since about two days ago except light snacks here and there."

Daisy decided to give in to their begging expressions although they really only belonged to the Digimon, Robert, and Babel. "Fine but we have to make it quick. And we also have a budget we have to look for a place that provides provisions for a low price. We spent too much money on some pretty useless purchases back at Toy Carnival."

"Uh, I wouldn't call this useless" Robert grinned as he took out the Pandamon doll from Rai's bag.

"I would" Daisy scoffed. She took the stuffed bear and shoved it back into the other human girl's bag before turning away. "And while you guys are on your lunch break, I'll be doing something a bit more productive and gather some information."

"Information on what?" Babel questioned.

"On Apocalymon!" she snapped. They took note of how the closest Digimon other than their partners started staring at them. "If our only way back home is to fight him then we're going to need to know everything we need to know about him. Not to mention a map might be useful just in case we get lost or something."

"You're going to fight Apocalymon?" Salamon inquired.

"What?" Daisy said, looking down. "You know that Salamon!"

"Um…Daisy?" Janyu said.

She turned around to look at the bespectacled boy only to see another Salamon, more specifically, her own, staring up at her. Daisy then turned back around and stared at the other Salamon, wondering where in the world she had come from. "…Um…"

"Salamon! There you are!" someone called from afar.

The humans and their partners pivoted their heads to the right and saw that the crowd of Digimon was splitting apart like the Red Sea to let another Digimon through. And when they saw what that Digimon was, they understood why the crowd made so much room for her to walk through. There was a giant cactus with ellipses cut out for her face, wearing red boxing gloves, and had a rather worried looking expression running towards them.

"Ah, Miss Togemon" the other Salamon smiled. "I'm sorry I ran off, I just saw these strange creatures and wanted to see them up close!"

Togemon picked up Salamon in her boxing gloves before scolding her lightly. "Salamon! You shouldn't be so rude as to call others 'strange'. I apologize for my student's…" she trailed off when she actually took in the appearances of the humans. "Oh my! I just realized that you're not Digimon! Aren't you creatures…humans?"

"Yeah, we are" Robert nodded, once again, asserting himself in the leadership role.

"They're the ones in the prophecy! I'm sure of it!" Salamon said enthusiastically.

"Then maybe we'll finally stop living in fear of that Apcalymon" Togemon said happily.

"Um…" was all the humans could get out.

**Digital Monster School – 10:53 AM**

"I had no idea that Digimon went to school too" Janyu said as they walked inside the building. "It's like one of those olden day schools where all the grades were in one classroom."

Robert stared at the legless Digimon sitting in their chairs, staring at the humans. "Except there's only one grade in this class."

They were face to face with, quite literally, faces, Koromon, Wanyamon, Budmon, Tsunomon, Yokomon, Yaamon, Kapurimon, and Puttimon. Salamon had went outside to play in the playground with the other older Digimon.

"Young Digimon, greet the humans who have come to save our world from Apocalymon" Togemon introduced.

The humans and their partners felt a little embarrassed to be introduced in such a fashion, well, all of them except for Robert who seemed to like the idea of being called a savior of the Digital World even though he hadn't done anything yet. The young Digimon greeted the students politely but it appeared as though they were suspicious. It's no wonder, they've lived under the tyranny of Apocalymon for quite some time now so the idea that he could be taken down by a couple of humans seemed impossible.

"Yup, that's us!" Robert smirked. "We're the heroes here to save the day!"

"Aren't you full of hot air today…" Daisy muttered.

"Isn't that how he usually is?" Salamon sighed.

"How do we know that you guys are really the digidestined?" Tsunomon asked them.

"Digidestined?" Rai repeated.

"According to the legend, that's what you guys are" Candlemon told her.

"Yeah!" Yaamon agreed. "Prove it to us! According to the legend, the humans are supposed to help their partners digivolve!"

A smug grin formed on Robert's face as he flipped out his bronze key in a 'cool guy' fashion. The light caught his goggles and they flashed like he made some sort of grand appearance in a theater. The other humans just stood in the background thinking that he had increased in hot air overnight. "No problem! D-Lock 1 Disengaged! Initiate Digivolution!"

"Ryudamon Digivolve to…Ginryumon!"

The little Digimon stared in awe as the new Digimon stood before them. Ryudamon stared back at them and for a long time, there was simply silence. It was broken almost instantaneously when the class burst into happy cheering, some were even trying to play on Ginryumon who didn't seem to mind. The only ones in the room who weren't very happy were the other humans and their partners because they knew, by just looking at the American goggle-head, that his ego was being well-fed at the moment.

"I heard from Salamon that you humans are a tad hungry" Togemon remembered.

"Yeah, we kind of are" Babel chuckled when his stomached growled in agreement. "Would you be able to spare some food to us?"

Togemon smiled, or at least, they were sure she smiled; they couldn't tell when her face was just holes. "You're in luck! You see, every morning, our local Digitamamon cooks food for the children's lunch period and today, he made a little too much for us. We have plenty to go around and enough for seconds too."

The digidestined had half a mind to start cheering like they were little kids desiring a new toy and their mothers just said 'yes'. "That's great!" they all said.

Togemon continued her lesson with the class while they had an early lunch outside, near the park where they could watch the rookie level class hang out and have fun. It was kind of depressing for the humans who were only reminded that they would be alone when they returned home. It made them almost consider staying there in the Digital World.

"I wonder what my friends are doing back in the states" Robert wondered aloud. "I know no one in London misses me right now." He sighed and leaned back, probably not the brightest idea on a full stomach but he didn't care. "You guys all probably have friends you want to get back to."

Babel scoffed, sounding like he was amused by Robert's comment. "Yeah, my 'friends' are just great, I'm sure they all miss having me around to take the heat for them. They just have me around so that when they get into trouble, they can use me as a scapegoat. As a matter of fact, the day I came to the Digital World, I was grounded by my parents because my so-called friends and I egged a teacher's car and then they ran off without me so I took all the blame. I didn't even want to do it but stupid Pete dragged me into it!"

"What does being 'grounded' mean?" Betamon asked.

"It means not being able to fly" FanBeemon answered.

The amphibious Digimon became wide-eyed as he looked up at his partner. "Babel, you can fly?"

"No!"

"Being grounded means you're restricted from doing certain things if you do something bad that your parents don't like" Robert answered. "My parents used to do that to me all the time because I always misbehaved in class."

"Yeah, I can totally see that from you" Daisy chortled.

Rai placed her piece of bread back into her bento box. "I've never gotten into trouble once with my parents but it feels like I'm always grounded. I never leave home because my parents want me to study all the time so I never got the chance to make friends or anything. I was always busy…"

"So I'm not the only one who was alone back in the human world" Janyu mused quietly. "I take a tai-chi class but I'm really bad so I get bullied by some of the other students. I have one friend but he went to Japan for a family vacation all summer so I'm stuck alone with those bullies."

Daisy was surprised; she never would've guessed that someone so wimpy as Janyu would've been stuck in a similar situation as she was back at home. It was just because they were different in comparison to other kids so they get picked on for those differences, it's really stupid. But she wondered how the Chinese boy could grow up to be so kind while she became so spiteful. They were in similar situations so why was it so different. Was it because of that one friend Janyu talked about or was it because she's weak?

"What about you Daisy?" Robert asked, breaking past her thoughts. "You got any friends back in the Soviet Union?"

"We don't have to ask about her getting grounded" Babel chuckled. "Her oppressive government probably already does that."

There it was; the bullying. It was simply because she grew up in the Soviet Union, where a communist government ruled and according to everything she had learned in history, Americans considered anything associated with communism to be bad. It wasn't fair; Janyu grew up under a communist government so why was she being picked on?

"You guys have really teamed on me a lot lately" Daisy said. "As a matter of fact, you've all teamed up so to answer both your questions, no, I don't have any friends and apparently, I still don't! But Robert, you apparently have Babel, and Janyu clearly has Rai on his side! So why…? Furthermore, my government isn't as oppressive as you idiotic Americans seem to think it is! Do you guys serious believe in the heinous lies fed to you by your honest government?"

They were all surprised by her outburst but they all became distracted when they heard a scream coming from the park. They all turned to see a crying Budmon being teased by a Gazimon and a Goblimon, both Rookie level Digimon so they had clear advantage over her. A Koromon and a Wanyamon tried to stop them but they were easily brushed aside. The young ones were apparently let out of class for recess while the humans were talking.

"Aw, you're so cute it makes me want to puke!" Gazimon laughed while holding Budmon up by her tail.

Goblimon held up his club close to her head, which was basically her entire body. "If I hit her with this, how far do you think I could send her?"

Gazimon cackled cruelly. "I don't know, why don't we find out?"

"This is what you get for being weak!" Goblimon laughed as he raised his club.

Daisy took a few steps back when she heard that, she remembered whenever she had been bullied by a couple of guys and when she tried to fight back, they called her weak. She hated that word because that's what everyone referred to her as. But she also felt that it was true, she couldn't protect herself. She felt that she was so pathetic that no one even wanted to help her, which was why she was alone, even now.

Her attention was brought back to the scene and she noticed that the other humans and their partners had taken a couple steps towards the bullies, about to stop them. But they paused when two of other Rookie-level Digimon, Patamon and Lopmon, came in to stand up for Budmon.

"Hey, why don't you pick on someone your own size?" Patamon said in his best 'tough-guy' voice.

"Yeah!" Lopmon agreed. "You two are an embarrassment to Digimon everywhere! You should be ashamed!"

Gazimon put down Budmon who immediately took the chance to hop away in fright. She squeezed herself between the Koromon and Wanyamon from earlier and hid behind them.

"Do you think we care what you puny little weaklings have to say?" Goblimon growled.

"That's right. You two are weak compared to other Rookie Digimon so you've got no right telling us what to do" Gazimon added.

Daisy was about to go back into the school building because she didn't want to hear the words that would come next. It was the words she heard all the time whenever she was teased. "If you're weak, you don't deserve to live." And she knew they were right.

"So what if we're weak physically?" Patamon inquired. Daisy froze. His 'tough-guy' act had faded into one with authority. "It doesn't matter because what truly matters is how strong you are in your heart. Some of the younger Digimon have been forced to endure your bullying for so long and the fact that they're still able to smile afterwards is what makes them strong."

"That's right" Lopmon nodded. "It's the same for most Digimon nowadays, we have to withstand Apocalymon and his tyrannical ruling and some of us even have to suffer seeing our friends get controlled by him. But those of us who are still standing and believing that things will get better one day are the real strong ones. Those who abuse and boast about their physical strength are the cowards who are too afraid to stand with everyone else."

"…Wait, I'm confused" Goblimon muttered.

Gazimon scoffed and pushed his companion down for his lack of understanding. "We don't care what you!"

As soon as Goblimon got back up, the two bullies were getting to launch their attacks at the smaller Digimon who were preparing their own attacks. At that moment, Togemon rushed out of the building with Salamon tailing behind her.

"All four of you stop it this instant!"

The bullies froze since their attacks were physical but the other two had already launched their mid-range moves and they couldn't stop them now.

"Boom Bubble!"

"Blazing Ice!"

Gazimon fell to his butt while Goblimon suddenly became a SnowGoblimon.

"Sorry Miss Togemon" Patamon and Lopmon quickly said.

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to" Togemon huffed.

Koromon and Wanyamon hopped over to their teacher. "But wait, it wasn't their fault" Koromon piped up.

"Yeah, they were just standing up for Budmon because she was being bullied by these two" Wanyamon said.

"It's true miss" Salamon nodded. "I saw the whole thing with my own eyes which is why I went back inside to get you in the first place."

"Well you still should've told me instead of fighting them. What if one of you had been seriously injured?" the teacher asked. "You know, just because your teacher had been absent doesn't mean you can do whatever you want."

"We're sorry…" Goblimon, Gazimon, Patamon, and Lopmon all said.

Salamon bounced towards Patamon and Lopmon with an exasperated expression. "Geez, you two aren't going to be like this when Pegasusmon comes to pick us up so that we can start our lives in the League of Angels together, are you?"

"Anyway, where is Budmon?" Togemon asked.

Koromon and Wanyamon turned around and realized that the plant Digimon was gone. "Where did she go?"

"Oh dear, you mean she's gone?!" Togemon shouted.

None of them had seen Budmon hop away into the forest with tears streaming down her face, well, no one except for Daisy. Budmon reminded Daisy of herself and she just had this feeling that she had to help the little Digimon out.

"I was sure I saw her run in here…" Daisy muttered.

"Daisy, don't you think we should go back?" Salamon asked. "We're going to get lost in here by ourselves. And besides, the others will get really worried when they realize that we ran off on our own."

"As if they would care" Daisy scoffed. "I don't know about this whole 'save the world' business but it sounds like some sort of suicide mission. The others can go if they want but it shouldn't involve me, I don't belong in this world or any world for that matter. I'm weak…" She listened to Patamon and Lopmon's words but it didn't help much, she wasn't just weak physically but emotionally and mentally as well. "I really am pathetic…"

"That's not true and you know it!" Salamon said.

"Well what do you know?!" Daisy snapped. "You've barely known me for a week. You don't know me…"

"…You're right, I don't but I do know that you're not weak."

Daisy crossed her arms and continued on her search but was still listening to her partner as she looked. "And what makes you say that?"

"I don't think a weak person would be trying so hard to help someone else" Salamon told her matter-of-factly. Daisy stopped in front of the bush she was about to check and listened patiently. "If you were truly weak then you'd just ignore the fact that Budmon ran away instead of running in here the way you did."

"I only did it because I felt bad for her, that's all" Daisy replied.

"Did anyone help you when you were pushed around?" Salamon asked.

"…No."

"Then this just proves my point even more. You realize what the right thing for someone to do is to help and not just standby while things are happening around them. Even though no one came to your rescue, you're trying to come to Budmon's."

"That doesn't make me strong" Daisy retorted. "It just makes me understanding."

Salamon was about to respond when they suddenly heard Budmon scream. They turned and immediately ran towards her crying and they found that she had been captured by the tail of a giant floating sunflower Digimon.

"Now that is a big flower" Daisy gasped.

"That's Sunflowmon" Salamon said. "I think I remember Togemon saying that she's the teacher for the Rookie-level Digimon who's been absent the past few days."

**Digital Analyzer: **Sunflowmon are Digimon who prefer to bathe in the sun rather than fight in battles. However, as they absorb sunlight, they become much more energetic as well as physically stronger. They are gentle creatures but have been known to destroy towns with their Sunshine Beam attack after storing sunlight for days.

Daisy's eyes were drawn to an eerie glowing chain on Sunflowmon's tail which she could easily recognize. "A Dark Chain!"

"Sunshine Beam!"

Daisy and Salamon ducked behind a bush and they heard what sounded to be a loud crack and then a tree falls. "And I thought my teachers were evil" Daisy muttered. "Salamon, let's save Budmon and then get out of here."

"Wh-Why are you doing this to me Miss Sunflowmon?" Budmon shook.

"You've been a naughty child and you deserved to be punished" Sunflowmon replied.

Salamon leapt into the air and collided with Sunflowmon's face, pushing the plant Digimon back a few feet but not off balance. It did give Daisy a chance to grab Budmon out from her grasp and get away a few meters. "Come on Salamon, let's get out of here!"

Salamon was just about to go after her human partner when she was whacked to the side by Sunflowmon's tail.

"Salamon!"

Sunflowmon focused on fighting the Rookie Digimon who kept trying to stand back up every time she was whipped back by the larger Digimon's tail. Daisy could only watch as her partner struggled more and more to stand with each blow. She was silently praying for Salamon to just stay down already, to give up, she could win this fight but Salamon was persistent. "What are you doing? We have to go!" Daisy finally shouted.

"Daisy…?" Budmon called from her arms. "You can't just leave Sunflowmon here by herself. We have to destroy that Dark Chain."

"But what can we do?" Daisy said in a distressed tone. She looked back to her partner. "She's never even fought before. We're too weak, I'm weak. I can't even get Salamon to digivolve."

"We've been over this…" Salamon coughed. "Physical strength doesn't matter. If I were to give up now, then we'd lose all hope but if I don't, we can keep on fighting."

"But you can't win this fight!"

"Then help me win! I need you Daisy!"

Sunflowmon raised one of her massive arms and he expression changed into a smile. "Smiley Slap!"

Daisy put Budmon down and immediately ran straight for Salamon. She grabbed the small Digimon into her arms and held her close just as she was slapped away. She kept rolling until she crashed into a tree, causing some leaves to fall on top of them.

"Are you okay Daisy?" Salamon asked.

"My body is still physically weak so no, not really" Daisy admitted weakly but then she flashed her partner a smile. "But I'll keep going until there's nothing left of me. I can't always let the guys be ahead of me."

Salamon smiled back and nodded firmly. "Yeah, let's give this teacher a lesson in respect."

Sunflowmon didn't seem to like the way they were talking about her so she raised her tail up and the thorns seem to protrude out of them way more than usual. She swung it in their direction and the sharp projectiles were sent flying. "Cactus Tail!"

Daisy caught the bronze key that popped out of the compartment from her D-Sync. She could see the thorns were only a meter away but that was all the distance she needed. "D-Lock 1 Disengaged! Initiate Digivolution!"

"Salamon Digivolve to…" Salamon's form became more human-like as the glowing pink ring surrounded her body. From her back grew four gorgeous wings and she speared to have gained golden plated armor. In one hand, she held a staff and in the other, La Pucelle (The Maiden), her sword. "Darcmon!"

"Oh wow!" Budmon sighed. "She's so pretty."

**Digital Analyzer: **Even though Darcmon is a low-ranking angel Digimon, she is known to slice through any enemy like a blade through air. She fights on the battlefield almost as if she is dancing, putting on a performance like no other. She has thus been dubbed as a "Goddess of the Battlefield."

"La Pucelle!" Darcmon cut right past the thorns and flew straight for Sunflowmon.

The flower Digimon was surprised by the sudden power and speed gain of the angel Digimon so she did her best to avoid her sword. The best Sunflowmon could do now was evade and keep her tail, with the Dark Chain around it, out of Darcmon's range.

"I won't be able to break the Dark Chain this way!" Darcmon shouted.

"Well I'm sure we'll be able to figure something out!" Daisy said back in response. But she wasn't sure what. Darcmon was clearly faster than Sunflowmon but with Sunflowmon's massive size and the limited space they had in the forest, it wasn't exactly difficult for Sunflowmon to keep her tail out of sight. How could they destroy the Dark Chain without putting bodily harm to the victim? "That's it! You need more space for Sunflowmon's tail to become a target. So send Sunflowmon in the only direction where it'll lead to more room, up!"

Darcmon's sword began to glow radiantly and she began to perform a magnificent sword technique that resembled that of a dance. "Baptism of Love!"

Sunflowmon appeared to have lost composure as she tried desperately to avoid the cuts and soon enough, she was backed up into a corner. Daisy was right, the only escape now, was to fly upwards and Darcmon followed. In the sky, there was plenty of room to dodge an attack but for someone as fast as Darcmon, it might be a little bit difficult.

"Sunshine Beam!"

Darcmon gracefully avoided the attack and ended up right in front of Sunflowmon.

"Sunflowmon, as a teacher, you dish out punishments to students who misbehave" Darcmon said. "However, as a messenger of the heavens, I must deliver divine judgment upon your heart. You have succumbed to the darkness of Apocalymon and now, I shall set you free."

"Uh, Sunshine –!"

"La Pucelle!" Darcmon flew right underneath the flower and cut through the Dark Chain, leaving it as two pieces falling to the ground. "The heavens speak, and they say your heart is pure. I hope you will continue on this path of light."

Sunflowmon slowly floated back down to the ground and drowsily opened her eyes. "What was I doing?"

"You were possessed by a Dark Chain but don't worry" Daisy smiled. "Darcmon saved you."

Budmon shook her body, well, head in Daisy's arms. "No, you saved Miss Sunflowmon, Daisy."

Sunflowmon turned herself to face Daisy with a smile. "Then I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Please, let me take you back to the school building."

Just before Daisy could accept, she heard four voices calling out to them. They belonged to Rob, Rai, Ryudamon, and Candlemon. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We've been looking all over for you!" Robert practically shouted at her. He was too out of breath to keep yelling consistently. "You…You idiot! You…You know, you….You really worried us…Back there! What were you…thinking? It's dangerous to be on your own."

By this time Rai had caught her breath. "We didn't know what to do you when you vanished. Robert and Babel were the most worried though, they ended up arguing about where you were and then we ended up splitting up."

"You guys…Were really that worried about me?" Daisy blinked.

"Of course we were!" Robert coughed. "You keep us in check when we're doing stupid things. Without you, we'd probably be stuck in one place for way longer than necessary." Robert stopped looking and sounding so angry when he noticed that Daisy had started crying. She had one arm holding Budmon, and the other to cover her eyes. "H-Hey, I'm not that mad at you. I was just really worried."

"I know" she sniffed. "I just can't believe you guys were that concerned though. I really thought you guys didn't care about me."

"Don't be ridiculous" Candlemon said. "You can be bossy sometimes but if you weren't, we wouldn't really get anywhere would be."

"And it would be boring if everything always went the way Rob wanted" Ryudamon grinned before getting a punch to the head from his partner.

"Daisy…" Rai said as she gave the other girl a hug. "I know it's seemed like we've all teamed up and kind of left you out but I promise you that you will always be our friend."

"Thank you Rai…" Daisy nodded. Over Rai's shoulder, she gave their goggle head a ssmile. "And thank you Rob."

Robert blushed and turned away from the two girls before realizing something. "Hold on, where is Salamon and what's with the giant flower. Wait…Could it be that Salamon digivolved into this massive thing?!" Someone tapped his shoulder and he turned around to see Darcmon staring at him. "And you must be the Digimon that Salamon fought!"

"I am Salamon you dolt!"

"Whoops…Heh, sorry…"

Sunflowmon couldn't help smiling, she always loved seeing children get along. Which reminded her, they needed to get moving along. "We should go back to the school now, Togemon will be really worried about you, Budmon."

**Digital Monster School – 2:43 PM**

"I can't believe that Salamon digivolved and we weren't there to see it!" Betamon said.

"Eh, I'm sure it wasn't that special" Babel muttered.

"Oi, how long are you going to keep denying that you were worried about her?" Robert asked.

"I'm not denying anything" Babel scoffed. "I knew she would be fine. You were the one whining about her. I bet you have a crush on her."

"Pfft! As if!" Robert exclaimed. "Besides, every time I see her for the first time on a new day, the first thought that comes to mind is that she's a dude."

"That's true."

"I can hear you, you know!" Daisy shouted at them as she knocked their heads together. "Geez, you guys really have no idea what the term tact means, do you? I'm surprised the two of you haven't killed yourselves insulting people."

"Ow…That hurts, you know…" both Babel and Robert groaned.

"Then watch what you're saying next time!"

"I can't believe we were worried about you" Robert grumbled.

"I heard that!"

Daisy sighed in exasperation but she felt pretty happy to know that they really cared about her. She was about to walk back into the school where the students should be over with celebrating over the fact that Sunflowmon and Budmon had returned. But before she reached the entrance, Janyu came over to stop her.

"Daisy…Why were you so mad before?" he inquired.

"I…" Daisy wasn't sure if she should respond with the truth but judging from the expressions of the others who had overheard, they all wanted to hear the truth. "Well, you see, I thought that I being picked on for being weak and because I'm a Soviet. You know, with the whole Cold War thing going on between America and my country, I can be a little paranoid. But now I realized that it was just stupid of me to think of something like that. After all, our generation isn't as conservative as our parents."

"That's definitely true" Babel chuckled.

"Why don't we forget about my little outburst?" Daisy suggested. "I'm glad that you guys are my friends even if we don't know all that much about each other yet. Well, I guess by that logic, I can't really call you guys, friends just yet."

"By the end of this adventure, I'm sure we'll all be the best of friends" Robert promised.

"I would hope so" Rai smiled. "I don't think I'd be able to survive who knows how long with you guys fighting. Then again, it would be kind of weird for you guys not to fight."

"True, I can't imagine myself being 'the best of friends' with any of you guys. Well, except maybe Rai" Daisy grinned.

"Hey, now that is just rude" Robert chuckled.

As soon as they stepped back into the school building, a crowd of young Digimon surrounded them; most of them seemed to be interested in Daisy and Salamon though. It wasn't long before Togemon and Sunflowmon stepped in to prevent an accident from happening.

"You have our gratitude Digidestined" Togemon said after the kids had settled. "If it weren't for you, something terrible could've happened to Budmon and you brought back Sunflowmon and released her from that horrible Dark Chain. I know that if anyone will be able to save our world from Apocalymon, then it's you."

"I couldn't agree more" Sunflowmon nodded.

"Hey, Daisy's Salamon" Patamon called. "You wouldn't happen to be that same Salamon who was raised by the League of Angels, were you?"

Daisy blinked. She had heard of the League of Angels before because Patamon, Lopmon, and the other Salamon had been talking about it. Apparently, for those three, after they digivolve to their Champion forms, they would be let into the League of Angels. It sounded like it was some sort of society for angelic Digimon which would make sense considering Salamon just evolved into Darcmon.

Salamon smiled. "You guessed it right. And I remember Seraphimon asking you guys to join when you're ready."

"Is there any advice you can give us before we go?" Lopmon asked.

"Just remember to always hold on to hope" Salamon replied. "At least, that's what Seraphimon always tells me."

Daisy poked her partner from behind. "Hey, who's Seraphimon and what's this League of Angels thing?"

"Seraphimon watches over our sector of the Digital World" Salamon answered. "However, he can't do it by himself so he created the League of Angels and has hundreds of holy Digimon working under him. His right hand mon, Murmukusmon, is the Digimon who took me in an raised me. He was also the one who told me that I was one of the Digimon destined to save this world from darkness. And that's when I set out to find you."

"Then I guess we're going to have to visit him to thank him" Daisy smiled.

"Really?" Salamon gasped. "That would be great!"

"Hey, are you guys forgetting our next stop?" Robert said. "We're supposed to be going to Shellfish Beach and then to Magic Village."

"That's right!" Babel sighed. "I almost forgot!"

They all turned to the two teachers and bowed. "Thank you all for your hospitality. We have to go now but we hope to see you all again one day."

They ran out of the building without even hearing the goodbyes from the kids or the teachers but as they were running, Togemon wished them luck. They slowed down as they neared the park and they noticed that Koromon, Wanyamon, and Budmon were all waiting for them on the swings.

"Shouldn't you guys be in class?" FanBeemon buzzed.

"Budmon had something to say to you guys" Wanyamon replied.

Budmon hopped down from the swing and approached Daisy. "Um…I just…I wanted to thank you for running after me before. Usually, no one really cares about what happens to me other than Koromon and Wanyamon. So thank you so much!"

"You shouldn't say that no one care" Daisy sighed. She bent down and patted the plant Digimon on the head and smiled. "Sometimes, the most unlikely of people care about you and you just don't realize it."

"Whoa, Daisy, you actually look like a girl when you smile like that" Robert teased.

"Yeah, that's right, who would've thought it was possible?" Babel added.

A vein popped on Daisy's forehead and she shot up and started chasing them down. "When I get you two, I am going to tear your heads off!"

"It looks like some things will never change" Ryudamon sighed.

"I don't think that's true" Salamon smiled. "Just look at them. Robert and Babel aren't the only ones laughing this time around."

"I did say it would be weird if they didn't fight" Rai chuckled. "Hey, wait up!"

The others ran to catch up with them and as they ran, they waved goodbye to those last three in-training Digimon.

"You know" said Koromon. "One day, I want to be partnered with a human too."

"Yeah" Wanyamon nodded. "I bet my partner will be really smart and cool!"

"I don't really care about strength" Budmon giggled. "I just hope to be best friends with my partner."

"Yeah, me and my partner will be something amazing together" Koromon breathed.

"Oh? And what would that be?" Wanyamon asked.

"Hm…" Koromon thought but the answer came quickly as the digidestined faded into the crowds of the town. "The ultimate team!"

-X-

**It looks like Daisy learned a little lesson about the other kids. It looks like there are only Babel and Rai who need to digivolve their partners and the next stop seems to be Shellfish Beach. What new enemy will they face next? And how will they pull together to defeat Apocalymon? Find out on Digimon: Children of the Past.**

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